The End of Unemployment Benefits: 5 Things to Know

It's easy to tell from your comments on "Why is this the President's Fault?" that you have a job that offers you the income needed to live comfortable, that you don't have to worry about where your next meal is coming from or where you're going to find the money to pay your car loan (so they don't take your vehicle away because then it'll be even more difficult to find work) and that if you don't feel good you can go to your doctor and get the necessary medications. Obama promissed us change. He promissed to make a difference and most of his promises all went into the trash when he got elected into office. Up until the age of 57 when I lost my job and couldn't find re-employment, I have never received any type of public assistance, but always felt confident that if I really needed it, I would receive it. I always felt that my government would be there to help me. After all, I've been a hard working citizen of this country, paying into the system my entire life. Why wouldn't I be entitled to receive assistance if, God forbid, I really needed it. Well, I live in pain 24x7 due to medical problems. Now be honest with me...if you were in my position - not able to afford the doctor visits, pain medications or surgeries needed to improve my quality of life, and were denied any assistance from our government but saw that illegal aliens, who never paid a penny into our country, were being given food, housing and medical coverage, while I'm being treated like the red-headed stepchild and told, "sorry, but according to our guidelines, you don't qualify for assistance, how would you feel? Obama has admitted many times that he's dropped the ball, that he hasn't lived up to his promises but that doesn't put food on my table. The sooner this country securies their borders,stops giving away trillions of dollars (that we can't afford) to all these third world countries and starts taking care of the USA and the people that contributed to make it what it is today, the sooner we'll start recovering. My Mother always told us, "Charity begins at home". It's time Obama starts living this rule and takes care of their own...not everybody else's. Don't get me wrong..if we had the money, which we don't, and our country was in better, stonger shape, which it isn't, I'd have no problem helping out the rest of the world but we're sliding into that mud hole way too fast. It's time to stop shutting the door on your own citizens and worry about what's happening in your own back yard before it's too late. Our politicians should be ashamed of the way citizens like me are being treated. IT'S TIME TO WAKE UP AMERICA!

Patricia from Long Island, NY of NY 8:13PM February 02, 2011

Four score and seven years ago yeah that is for the tourists but what about the citizens who live here that can't seem to catch a break. I was on a track to real success four years ago when I moved here from the poconos. Recently divorced and willing to make a change for the better I met my now wife and her five wonderful children. Work was always a no brainer for me for I never needed to use any of the programs for living like TANF or food stamps or unemployment compensation etc. I was a confident person with hopes and dreams to raise the family my first wife denied me of. Well back in 2008 the Obama hope was letting us know that "YES WE CAN" yes we can what??? Fail at reaching goals we set for ourselves. Fail at showing our children that we can earn a living. I was let go from an area food company (trying real hard not to be bitter) because I was about to be fully vested and was fired on a lame madeup ruling now you can say I am just bitter or I am just a victim of a bad circumstance but I worked at this company for three years and never came in late never took days off and worked twelve hour shifts and even seven days a week. Yes we were tired and would have loved to spend some time with our families but work came first, so why is it when you are about to reach the next level the dream ends. Now after my tangent I worked seasonal at another area company and various temp agencies because for six months this food company denied my benifits for unemployment for the madeup ruling they created. Well according to state law the the six-times the weekly rate rule came into effect when I came to the end of Obama yes we can first year. In January I started getting unemployment benefits and took a deep look at what kind of future I needed to support my now large family. I started going back to college just like at least 70% of my classmates. Half way through the second semister congress decides that EUC benefits are not necessary. Well congress why don't you come to my house in this historical town and tell my children why we had to cancel summer activities and even though your step father is a 4.0 student you will have to eat leftovers and maybe even lunch for supper because congress thinks that all people on unemployment tiers are drug addicts and congress is supporting our habbit. I still have a dream and a vision I am still a 4.0 student but what I am now is damaged for America the land that I love is showing me and my family no kindness. How do I tell my creditors that the car payment is in the mail when the only thing in the mail is another application for a job that will never be answered. How can I tell my Mortgage lender that I will get current so you don't take my house that bed five children right when I get my first paycheck from ????? So Obama if you still believe in "YES WE CAN" give me a reason to get a good nights sleep and have the piece of mind I have lived with my whole life until on very dark day back in June 09.

Timothy Sterling of PA 7:57PM July 12, 2010

I am 57 years old, have never been unemployed in my life and never thought I would ever find myself in this type of situation. When I was let go from my last job almost 2 years ago, I figured I'd have another job within a few weeks. Since I consider myself to have a great work history with a great reputation, I didn't anticipate a problem. Here I am, almost 2 years later and the trip has been an absolute nightmare. Since I've never been unemployed, I've always been a contributing member of society, never asked for a penny or any help of any kind. Needlless to say, I have medical problems and couldn't believe the response I got when trying to get help with medical coverage. I was told "Sorry, on unemployment your income is too high to get assistance." Do they have any idea what it takes to survive on Long Island? I took all my monthly bills and actually showed them that my income (without paying for COBRA) did not cover my monthly expenses. They shrugged their shoulders and said they have a guideline that they must follow and I don't fit into that guidleline! My monthly prescription medications were higher than my total unemployment income! I wrote to my Assemblymen, Senators and everyone I could think of asking if this was a joke. I got no assistance and now my unemployment has run out. While unemployment required me to send in monthly reports showing I had applied for a minimum of 2 jobs weekly, I applied for between 5 to 12 jobs weekily. When I show up for interviews I'm up against college age kids and don't even get the courtesy of a call back. I'm totallty disappointed in our government and our President who was supposed to make such great changes should be thrown out on his A- -. He is an embarassment to the American people - along with the rest of the politicians. I say that we should hire everyday people to represent us in congress. People like myself who know what it's like to struggle and who know what needs to be done to fix our government. Why is an illegal alien given medical coverage when I've been a working member of society, contributing my entire life and now that I need help everyone turns their backs? Our government should be ashamed of themselves and what's happened to our country. We need to secure our boarders and send the immigrants back to where they came from. I can't believe that immigrants are forming groups that are protesting in how they're being treated. Let them go back to where they came from if they don't like it here! They get treated better than I do and I was born here! What's wrong with this picture, America??? I was always very patriotic but along with everything else I've lost over the past two years, I'm totally disgusted in what our country has turned into. What am I supposed to do now to survive? And how does our government have the nerve to come up with these health plans that our own President and members of Congress don't have to use? If it's good enough for us, it should be good enough for them

Patricia Trapasso of NY 1:10PM July 06, 2010

I'm a full time student that is in reach of getting my associate degree in business. But unfortunately my benefits are coming to an end and I'm forced to give up my dream. The Department of Labor offers you the dream of going back to school and then takes it away. This is not right! I think if you are in school and passing you should continue to get benefits. The Department of Labor need to be more informative to people because all they are doing is handing out more broken dreams.

La La of GA 11:30AM May 27, 2010