Some Unemployed Americans Are Getting Just $5 a Week to Live On
The COVID-19 pandemic has caused an unemployment crisis unlike any other. Since March, tens of millions of workers have lost their jobs, and with COVID-19 cases surging and many states imposing additional restrictions, it's clear that the situation could get much worse before it gets better.
But unfortunately, jobless workers may be in for a major financial shock now that the $600 weekly boost to unemployment benefits has expired. Under March's CARES Act, workers on unemployment were eligible for that increase through March 31, but lawmakers have allowed it to run out as they debate a second relief package. And that could leave some jobless workers with as little as $5 a week in benefits to live on.
The $600 weekly boost that was in effect through July 31 was a federal unemployment supplement. Meanwhile, state benefits can vary based on different criteria -- namely, workers' former wages and state formulas for calculating benefits. But a number of states have a minimum benefit that's well below $100 a week, and without that extra $600, some workers may be left with very little money to live on.
Source Fool.com
