Exhaustion of Jobless Benefits

Thousands in Mass. could lose jobless aid next week, By Robert Gavin and Matt Viser, May 27, 2010, Boston Globe: “Nearly 100,000 Massachusetts residents would lose unemployment benefits by the end of July if Congress fails to extend an emergency program that has allowed laid-off workers to collect checks for up to almost two years, according to state labor officials. The program, enacted as part of last year’s stimulus bill, is set to expire Wednesday, and with concerns about the federal deficit mounting on Capitol Hill, it is unclear when Congress will act on a $145 billion spending bill that extends emergency benefits through November. If the emergency benefits expire, state officials said, unemployed Massachusetts workers would start losing benefits at the estimated rate of 10,000 a week, starting next week…”