Oregon Still Struggling With Unemployment Benefits
More than a year into the pandemic-induced recession, many unemployed Oregonians are still struggling to secure their benefit payments. The state is still well below the national average for timely benefits payments.
April 28, 2021 • (TNS) Megan Gaddini has been out of work for more than a year, since she lost her marketing job in the weeks before the pandemic hit Oregon.
Swept up in the flood of jobless claims that inundated the state a year ago, Gaddini and her husband – who also lost his job – spent five months trying to fix their unemployment claims and secure their benefits. Oregon was among the slowest in the nation to pay jobless benefits during the early days of the pandemic.
A year into the recession, collecting Oregon jobless benefits remains a struggle
Updated 10:20 AM;
Today 6:26 AM
“Our agencies have to be more resilient,” said Gov. Kate Brown. “They have to be more nimble and flexible. And they have to be able to adapt quickly.”
Cathy Cheney/Portland Business Journal pool
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Megan Gaddini has been out of work for more than a year, since she lost her marketing job in the weeks before the pandemic hit Oregon.
Swept up in the flood of jobless claims that inundated the state a year ago, Gaddini and her husband – who also lost his job – spent five months trying to fix their unemployment claims and secure their benefits. Oregon was among the slowest in the nation to pay jobless benefits during the early days of the pandemic.
A year into the recession, collecting Oregon jobless benefits remains a struggle msn.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from msn.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Acting state director likes economic triggers, but says other changes to safety net need discussion.
The acting director of the Oregon Employment Department says there are things to like, and much to consider, in a sweeping proposal by Oregon Sen. Ron Wyden to overhaul the nation s Depression-era system of unemployment benefits.
Wyden, who leads the Senate Finance Committee, and Colorado Sen. Michael Bennet laid out their framework for a revised system in a document they released Wednesday, April 14.
Wyden has talked about changes to the system for almost a year, since the coronavirus pandemic triggered the sharpest one-month economic downturn and a record number of unemployment claims in recent history. In Oregon, the unemployment rate spiked from a record-low 3.5% in March 2020 to a record-high 13.2% (adjusted) the following month and claims topped 500,000. The March 2021 rate was 6%.