Unemployment Claims Are Up for the Second Week in a Row

The number of Americans filing a first-time unemployment claim rose for the second week in a row. Roughly 1.4 million new unemployment claims came through as lawmakers continued to debate a second COVID-19 relief package whose unemployment boost is perhaps the most controversial component.

Under March's CARES Act, workers on unemployment were entitled to an extra $600 a week in benefits -- a provision that was set to expire by July 31, and has, in fact, already expired in practice due to the way states pay unemployment benefits. Meanwhile, tens of millions of Americans are now stuck in a situation in which, at least for the immediate future, they'll be facing a hit in weekly income until lawmakers hammer out an agreement.

In May, Democratic lawmakers proposed the HEROES Act, which called for the $600 weekly unemployment boost to remain in effect through January of 2021 rather than expire in July. But the HEROES Act effectively stalled out in the Senate when Republican lawmakers made it clear that they weren't happy with its terms.

Continue reading

Source Fool.com