Realted Stories
Reforming Unemployment
International President Tom Beffenbarger
says that state governments need to take a hard look at their unemployment
insurance systems to make sure they are doing the job.
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Unemployment Insurance:
Will it pay the bills? A laid off IAM member's experience.
Different Flavors of Unemployment
Understanding the causes of unemployment is vital to combatting it.
Using Unemployment as a Weapon
Employers have traditionally used unemployment to drive down wages, divide workers, and undermine unions.
Resources & Contacts
How you can help effect unemployment reform.
Get the Video
Order "Reality Checks" a free IAM-produced video that explores the current state of the nation's unemployment insurance system.
Email your order to IAM Communications
Director Rick Sloan at rsloan@iamaw.org
or call the ommunications Department. 301-967-4520.
UI Stops Recessions From Becoming Depressions
Everyone thinks of UI as a system for protecting individual workers, but UI was designed mainly to protect the capitalist system from its own instabilities.
The UI system banks away billions of dollars during good economic times, when unemployment is low. As the economy weakens and people start losing jobs, UI sends those billions of dollars circulating through the economy in the form of benefit checks. (In economic lingo, this is called "counter-cyclical" spending.)
Without UI, recessions would slide into depressions, because people without incomes can't buy products. With UI, at least some money keeps flowing, keeping businesses afloat and hastening economic recovery.
How important are the "counter cyclical" effects of UI? According to the Department of Labor, every $1.00 paid out in UI benefits adds $2.15 to the U.S. Gross Domestic Product.
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