How would you feel if everyone who accepted unemployment money from the government had to pay it back when they got a job?



Details:
-Unemployment money will last no longer than 6 months.
-The repaid money will help other people support themselves between jobs.
-Freeloading (those who never repay) is only possible once in this system. Any person who does not repay their money will be ineligible for any money in the future.
-Money lost by freeloading will be replaced by our current method of funding the system: business unemployment taxes.
-Business unemployment tax will be 80% lower, based on the prediction that 20% of participants will become freeloaders and 80% of the taxpayer burden will be lifted.



Theory:
People who file unemployment would be in a hurry to find a job in order to reduce the amount borrowed.

Unemployment money will no longer viewed as a luxury, but a service for those in dire need of the service.


Problems solved:

-Those on unemployment have no incentive to wait until the benefits expire to find a job.
- Money will be able to be recycled. service->person A -> service -> person B.

3/25/2011 12:22:37 AM

politics? in my chit chat?

3/25/2011 12:24:08 AM

Sure if they stop taking out money from everyone's check weekly to pay for unemployment.

3/25/2011 12:24:31 AM

Federal unemployment taxes (FUTA) are strictly an employer-paid tax. In other words, FUTA tax is not withheld from an employee's gross pay.

3/25/2011 12:25:50 AM

Another thing I hate is minimum wage. Why the fuck can't I just pay people whatever I want?

3/25/2011 12:27:00 AM

Still gets a No...I was lucky enough to have a boss fire me last year. 8 months of free money was perfect.

^ Because you'd pay em nothing.

[Edited on March 25, 2011 at 12:28 AM. Reason : .]

3/25/2011 12:27:17 AM

Madman, try to stay on topic. Pop in your ADHD pill and follow along.

3/25/2011 12:29:06 AM

lolz old white republican ass assuming nobody on unemployments lookin for a jorb

at most, id be okay with drug tests while unemployed. id gladly submit piss.

3/25/2011 12:30:00 AM

And whats the deal with airline food?

3/25/2011 12:30:41 AM

People already "pay it back" in taxes and other ways so they have it in case they need it.

The only way it would make sense is to eliminate the taxes that fund unemployment, but then you have a system that is going to be abused in other ways, but only worse.

3/25/2011 12:30:48 AM

^^^ I really didn't look for a job. Unemployment system is a joke, they don't even check work searches.

[Edited on March 25, 2011 at 12:32 AM. Reason : ^]

3/25/2011 12:31:44 AM

lol mr joshua

3/25/2011 12:32:36 AM

Quote :

"lolz old white republican ass assuming nobody on unemployments lookin for a jorb"

You should read the policy, it covers both kinds of people:A. people looking for a jorb and B. people not looking for a jorb

3/25/2011 12:34:24 AM

Mr. Joshua

[Edited on March 25, 2011 at 12:35 AM. Reason : .]

3/25/2011 12:34:40 AM

Quote :

"People already "pay it back" in taxes and other ways so they have it in case they need it. The only way it would make sense is to eliminate the taxes that fund unemployment, but then you have a system that is going to be abused in other ways, but only worse."

Federal unemployment taxes (FUTA) are strictly an employer-paid tax. In other words, FUTA tax is not withheld from an employee's gross pay.

3/25/2011 12:35:11 AM

it dont cover shit.


who's to say youd be able to pay it back? just findina job is hard enough, who knows if you'll find a job where you can pay back 6 months of UE? and lemme guess, someone would try to attach interest to it too

3/25/2011 12:37:42 AM

Quote :

"Federal unemployment taxes (FUTA) are strictly an employer-paid tax. In other words, FUTA tax is not withheld from an employee's gross pay. "

that doesn't change the fact that your plan makes no sense...

So now you have employers paying into a system that essentially has no expenses?

And of course those costs filter through to compensation (and everything else on the books) in some way. No Man Line Item is an Island.

3/25/2011 12:39:31 AM

I like the current system. It just needs to be managed better, and get rid of this 2 year nonsense.

3/25/2011 12:39:53 AM

A job isn't just a job.

It's your contribution to society.

Everyone who is able to work, needs to put in their share of work. Right now unemployment is at 10%. That means for every 9 people working, there is 1 person not working. It's not that the person is incapable of working, he is perfectly capable and is just sitting down not doing anything.

A working, fair system is a system in which everyone is working. Those who work more than others should get more. Those who work none, should get none.

[Edited on March 25, 2011 at 12:43 AM. Reason : .]

3/25/2011 12:43:03 AM

There is no such thing as a fair system. Ex. A barrel of crude oil cost around $42 to pump, ship etc. Why in the hell is it selling for $104 a barrel?

3/25/2011 12:47:33 AM

I kinda wanna get wrongfully terminated so i don't have to work for the rest of the semester...

I'm AstralAdvent and i approved this message.

[Edited on March 25, 2011 at 12:49 AM. Reason : i guess i could quit but i don't wanna be POOR]

3/25/2011 12:48:48 AM

^ quit with cause...just make your employer do something stupid. Thats what I did. And with the way obama has the extensions you wont have to work for at least a yr.

3/25/2011 12:54:25 AM

haha yeah i could actually do that very easily lol everything would already be on file haha.

I'm AstralAdvent and i approved this message.

3/25/2011 12:59:36 AM

Quote :

"Theory: People who file unemployment would be in a hurry to find a job in order to reduce the amount borrowed. Unemployment money will no longer viewed as a luxury, but a service for those in dire need of the service."

not all people on unemployment are sitting on their asses.... some are seriously looking for a job.

it's paid for by the employer, and goes into computation of costs of hiring an employee. so, while not directly taken out of an employees paycheck, the amount does infringe upon the maximum potential earning power of the employee.

it's not unreasonable to expect the unemployment office to actually cap it at the amount paid in... but on the same token, the unemployment office could make better investment in money by making efforts to find work for employees and being less self serve.

3/25/2011 1:00:45 AM

not sure I've ever posted in here

so puck_it

3/25/2011 1:01:09 AM

Quote :

"Sure if they stop taking out money from everyone's check weekly to pay for unemployment."

Quote :

"Federal unemployment taxes (FUTA) are strictly an employer-paid tax. In other words, FUTA tax is not withheld from an employee's gross pay."

ok then...
Sure if they stop taking out money from everyone's check weekly my employer's bottom line quarterly to pay for unemployment.

That satisfy you? Or do you think they should collect federal (and state) unemployment taxes, but not pay that money to the employees who are laid off?

I've been working 40 hours a week for over a decade. I've witnessed countless layoffs of my peers; each layoff increasing my company's federal and state unemployment taxes. The work I do pays the bills for my company which, in turn, pays those taxes. Ultimately, the burden of those unemployment taxes is on the working which consists of myself and my current co-workers. You're damn right that if I have footed the bill for the past decade I want the same treatment if I get laid off.

If they want to give me $75k and a $10/hour raise they can cancel the benefits and I'll call it even.

[Edited on March 25, 2011 at 1:05 AM. Reason : l]

3/25/2011 1:02:48 AM

^yessir

3/25/2011 1:05:40 AM

Quote :

"I've been working 40 hours a week for over a decade. I've witnessed countless layoffs of my peers; each layoff increasing my company's federal and state unemployment taxes. The work I do pays the bills for my company which, in turn, pays those taxes. Ultimately, the burden of those unemployment taxes is on the working which consists of myself and my current co-workers. You're damn right that if I have footed the bill for the past decade I want the same treatment if I get laid off."

You have your mind in the wrong place.

You shouldn't be "hoping to get laid off to get superior treatment" The fact that the system is like that is proof the system is wrong. Nonsensical policy makes no sense.


A common sense policy is common sense. We want to reward people FOR working, not for NOT working.


[Edited on March 25, 2011 at 1:17 AM. Reason : .]

3/25/2011 1:16:26 AM

Quote :

"You shouldn't be "hoping to get laid off to get superior treatment" The fact that the system is like that is proof the system is wrong. Nonsensical policy makes no sense."

What part of my post made you think I'm "hoping to get laid off to get superior treatment"? You really need to quit jumping to conclusions.

I do get rewarded for working via my paycheck.
My point is that my paycheck would have been bigger if my employer didn't have to pay this tax for the last decade. Why would I fund a program for a decade+ and then vote myself out of any benefits of said program? It's no different than canceling social security for people who have paid into the system for half their lives. You're going to have to put together a damn good transition plan to pay me back for the money I've already paid in if you want to sell this plan to me.

Your "plan" specifically states that unemployment money will last no longer than 6 months. That might work for people who go to work for 6 months and then draw 9 months of unemployment, but it's a kick in the ass for the guy who has put in 20 years of uninterrupted labor and gets laid off. Does that guy not deserve the opportunity to pursue education or be more selective about which job he chooses than the guy who manipulates the system to benefit his laziness?

Unemployment is already capped at ~$480 in NC. Going on unemployment would drastically cut my pay which means a drastic effect on my lifestyle and ability to save for the future. That's all the motivation I need.

[Edited on March 25, 2011 at 1:50 AM. Reason : s]

3/25/2011 1:41:42 AM

Quote :

"You're damn right that if I have footed the bill for the past decade I want the same treatment if I get laid off."

You're hoping to get the same treatment if you get laid off.

Not me. I save "emergency funds" for stuff like this. It's nobody's responsibility to live except my own (although that is not the current majority opinion in the US). The more effort I put into securing my own financial safety, the better off I am. It's called personal responsibility. It's not taught or practiced anymore.

If I don't find a new job...I suffer... I die.
If I don't find a friend to help me...I suffer... I die.
If I fail in every part of life... I suffer... I die.

I believe in charity, but I don't believe in free-hand outs. If you get charity, by god, you should give equal or more charity to someone else in need.

I despise the welfare program for 90% of welfare recipients. Welfare should be reserved for people unable to work like the mentally handicap or children. Not the parents of children, but children directly. In a form other than giving a mother a bonus check for each fuck trophy they create. Welfare should be in the form of free childcare so that the mother can get a job.

It's all about contributing to society.

I reiterate, the more people that are working in society, the easier it will be to retire early, have more days off per year, live off a 40 hour work week again, live off one parent's income in order to start a family without struggling.

It's been done before and it can be done again. Life should be getting easier with advancing technology but instead we are moving backwards and making life harder and harder.

3/25/2011 3:09:27 AM

serious chit chat

serious issues

3/25/2011 3:15:20 AM

In order to collect this moneys. Everyone should take a drug test.

3/25/2011 3:25:36 AM

this belongs in soap box

3/25/2011 6:41:55 AM

the OP is far from a GeniuS

wanting equitable treatment if one gets laid off is not the same as wanting to get laid off in order to get that treatment

3/25/2011 6:47:05 AM

The unemployment system is incredibly messed up but no one in here has any idea why thus far.

3/25/2011 6:59:55 AM

I agree with the OP

3/25/2011 7:16:52 AM

as someone who was unemployed for a year, i'll give my $0.02.

you should not have to pay back unemployment benefits.
there is a reason that money is there, and because people abuse the system, i should not be punished. i don't care about all your grandiose plans to eliminate/reduce business unemployment tax. personally, i think the companies that make millions/billions of dollars a year should chip in and pay when the economy goes south and they cut workers just to keep margins up and please stockholders.

i never once treated unemployment like a luxury. that is just fucking ludicrous. this argument obviously comes from someone looking to argue on the internet. if you think all people on unemployment are sitting around playing xbox in their boxers all day not giving a shit about finding a job, you either have done that yourself, or have deadbeat freeloader friends that have given you that info first hand. being unemployed was one of the most stressful times of my life.

while unemployed, i looked for a job as hard as i could, applied for jobs well below my qualifications (and was subsequently told i was over qualified), applied for jobs i had no interest in, and even tried to get government jobs. i couldn't get a fucking job at harris teeter or lowe's. after receiving 6 months worth of benefits stretched over 9 months, i worked odd jobs to pay my bills. not all people have options like i do to make that money.

this is obviously a troll thread and a troll argument, so i'm not responding to anything else in here. that's my thoughts.

3/25/2011 7:33:20 AM

hear me out?

3/25/2011 9:49:24 AM

Quote :

"I believe in charity, but I don't believe in free-hand outs. If you get charity, by god, you should give equal or more charity to someone else in need."

Quote :

"It's all about contributing to society."

And as I mentioned, I've been contributing to society for over a decade. I'm not going to feel bad about collecting $25k in benefits if I were to be affected by layoffs and needed a year to re-educate myself or find another job.

Quote :

"Not me. I save "emergency funds" for stuff like this. It's nobody's responsibility to live except my own (although that is not the current majority opinion in the US). The more effort I put into securing my own financial safety, the better off I am. It's called personal responsibility. It's not taught or practiced anymore."

I, too, have savings. Savings which would be dramatically higher if it weren't for unemployment taxes. I would like to not have them wiped away if I fall on hard times. I especially do not want them to be wiped away if I fall on hard times AFTER FOOTING THE BILL FOR OTHER UNEMPLOYED PEOPLE FOR THE LAST DECADE.

[Edited on March 25, 2011 at 9:50 AM. Reason : s]

3/25/2011 9:50:25 AM

[Edited on March 25, 2011 at 10:11 AM. Reason : wtf how did that happen?]

3/25/2011 9:54:21 AM

Quote :

"sitting around playing xbox in their boxers all day"

DONT KNOCK IT TILL YOU COCK IT

3/25/2011 9:55:06 AM

Haha how are they gonna pay it back when they haven't had a job for months? What happens when they can't? Throw them in jail?

3/25/2011 9:58:20 AM

Man I was unemployed for 10 months, and then only took a job to just get back to working. I was making the same as I was on unemployment (sad).

That money only covered about 3/4 of my expenses so times were hard. And it will take a while to get totally back on track.

I won't lie and say I didn't enjoy some days of not having to do a damn thing, but I looked and looked, and did a lot of volunteering during my time off. So yea I agree with d7.

That is all

3/25/2011 10:00:40 AM

I believe they already have this...it's called a bank loan

3/25/2011 10:01:22 AM

I'm using all of my unemployment money to make a failed pizza restaurant.

3/25/2011 10:02:00 AM

I agree with everything d7freestyler just said. I was unemployed for more than a year. Money from unemployment helped feed me while I used my emergency savings to keep a roof over my head and my college loans paid. Without unemployment helping me I don't know where I'd be.

As to paying it back, right now I'm cutting a check for over $600 because of how unemployment is being taxed on my return. After months and months of desperately searching for a job and getting back on my feet (having to relocate etc) taking even that much out to pay it back is very difficult. I've already cut out every extra expense I have to keep afloat. So to expect someone who has been unemployed, desperate enough to use government funds to stay alive and then expect them to be able to pay it back in full right away is ridiculous.

and for your "theory", it doesn't matter how much you're "in a hurry to find a job" It took hundreds of job postings in two different states before I found a full-time job. It's not a perfect world and jobs don't grow on trees right now.




[Edited on March 25, 2011 at 10:13 AM. Reason : ]

3/25/2011 10:10:53 AM

Quote :

"Haha how are they gonna pay it back when they haven't had a job for months? What happens when they can't? Throw them in jail?"

Besides all the other logical arguments already made, this was the first thing that popped into my head.

It's like:

"Hey...congrats on the new job!! Now about all of that debt you accumulated and savings you diminished while you were unemployed...put it on the back-burner...BECAUSE YOU OWE US MONEY!! I know you only got a job that still barely pays your bills, if that....but Fail-Pizza-Boy says that you owe us money because he has to pay his employees more than Pizza Hut...so pay up fucker so we can keep you in your life of poverty!!!"

3/25/2011 10:13:19 AM

The key is having a unique skill or talent that most applicants won't possess. I have my rapist wit, gunzz has his undescended testicles, and d7freestyler has his uncanny resemblance to Andres Nocioni. Find what you're good at and sell yourself.

3/25/2011 10:14:50 AM

Set'em

3/25/2011 10:15:26 AM

up

3/25/2011 10:16:10 AM