Unemployment and Jobless Benefits – Virginia

Joblessness up in Virginia, but fewer get benefits, By David Ress, March 17, 2010, Richmond Times-Dispatch: “The number of Virginians getting state unemployment benefits fell from a year ago even as the number out of work rose by one-fifth, a Richmond Times-Dispatch review of state data found. Fewer than one in three unemployed Virginians gets state benefits, the data show. These days, when people find work, their searches are lasting an average of 33 percent longer. Thousands more people than normal are running out of benefits before they find work, which makes the total of those covered decline even as unemployment rises, said Christine Chmura, chief economist of Chmura Economics and Analytics. Meanwhile, people who depend on part-time work, and others who move from one temporary job to another, can’t meet Virginia’s tough qualification triggers to qualify for benefits…”