Unemployment Insurance — Why You Should Care

The irascible Jon Keller gets it exactly right in a recent post on his blog — unemployment insurance reform is “crucial part of restoring job growth” in the state.

In our recent study on the cost of doing business in Massachusetts, we found that Massachusetts’ UI costs were significantly higher than many of our competitor states — New Hampshire is 72% lower, New York (!!) is 49% lower, North Carolina is 27% lower, and Texas is 59% lower.

Yesterday’s hearing (sub. reg.) at the State House appeared to have focussed on efforts to make unemployment benefits marginally more difficult to access.

Pioneer will have a policy brief later this month, analyzing the issue. We’ll examine the issue of benefits eligibility, but also take a long look at the $300m in cross-subsidization that occurs under the current system.

Who is subsidizing whom, you ask? We’ll never tell.