Did North Carolina's Decision to End Extended Unemployment Benefits Help or Hurt NC?

As extended unemployment benefits end, North Carolina seems to pull out of jobs slump

Image source: WashingtonPost.com

As you likely know, North Carolina is the only state in America that has refused the Federal government’s offer to extend unemployment benefits to the jobless in our state. Many have lambasted the decision – made to avoid NC getting further indebted to the national powers that be – already at $2.5 billion for unemployment aid. At the time the choice was made to eliminate extended unemployment payouts, our state had the 5^th highest unemployment rate in the country. But what’s happened since then?

Unemployment Continues to Decline

Since the July decision to scale back on jobless benefits, North Carolina’s unemployment rate has dropped a percent and a half which sounds great. But as joblessness has been on a steady yet modest decline since summer 2012, was the decision to cut benefits responsible or was this a trend already in play? And will this good news continue or is there a boomerang effect from the benefit cut-back that has yet to hit and will make things even worse for the jobless in our state and the economy?

Unemployment Compared to Other States

As of November, North Carolina has dropped to the 15^th highest unemployment – down drastically from July of this year. Overall last year, NC was the 4^th highest rate with an average jobless rate of 9.5%. By September, our state was down to the 13^th highest for unemployment and has continued to drop – as has joblessness in most areas of the country.

Jobless in North Carolina have reason to be encouraged in new job creation and lower unemloyment rates

Image source: MSNBC.com

Employment Opportunities in North Carolina

Since July, more than 40,000 new jobs have been created in the state. And according to the Carolina Journal, there are fewer people competing for these jobs as roughly 10,000 people opt out of the workforce to retire, go back to school or move out of state to pursue other opportunities. The Journal also proposes that longer term unemployment payments persuade people to not accept jobs they otherwise may have considered.

Abbreviated Unemployment Benefits – Good or Bad?

Time will tell. It’s just five months subsequent the decision to slap away the helping hand offered by the Federal government, but so far it looks promising. Of course, some areas of our state continue to be plagued by higher unemployment, but overall North Carolina’s job picture seems to be looking up. But for those that continue to be mired in joblessness, there are some solutions that can help.

The Consequences of Long Term Unemployment

If you have been jobless for many months or even a year or more, you no doubt have a pile of unpaid bills piled up and your unemployment benefits have run out (or are about to). One option that can help is to get rid of as many of your debts as possible, but they’re not going to go away on their own. Bankruptcy may be your best option to get some breathing room in your budget. Without your debts to deal with, you can afford to take your time job hunting or to live on a lower wage or part time job while you find a better opportunity. Contact the law offices of John T Orcutt to find out how bankruptcy can help you recover from the problems caused by unemployment.