Uncounted Layoffs

This article from Business Weeks talks about the million of people that have lost their jobs that are not counted in the unemployment figures the government gives out and they have no rights to any unemployment benefits. These people are freelancers or personal contractors that worked with many large companies and some earned more than $3000 a month. When the economy started going down so did their contracts and business in general. The major problem is these people have no right to collect any kind of unemployment and are not counted in the unemployment figures given by the government. There are also the people that worked full time and have had their hours reduced to part time. They have not lost their job but the change in income is so drastic that they can not meet their financial obligations. These people since they are still working can not collect any unemployment but are still in the same or worse situation as many people that have been laid off completely.
In the state of New York about 15% of workers are free lancers and now with the financial circumstances are trying to figure out a way to make ends meet. They had address the mayor of the city and he is trying to pass the the proposed "Unemployment Protection Fund." This fund would require the federal or state government to match about $300 for every $1,000 a Freelancers Union member voluntarily paid into a fund that could be drawn upon during lean times when work is scarce. If this would have been in place earlier then many freelancers would have some kind of safety net.
Personally I believe some major restructuring needs to be done with unemployment benefits and who is eligible. The article said, the Bureau of Labor Statistics hasn't adapted to the realities of the modern workforce, and it's a disgrace that we don't have a true picture of what's going on." Like the article says they need to readjust and include all kind of workers that contribute to the economy of the country. Their should be no reason why if someone had their hours cut in half, and their paycheck as well they should not be receiving unemployment benefits.


LINK: http://www.businessweek.com/bwdaily/dnflash/content/mar2009/db20090329_789973.htm