A Virginia House of Delegates subcommittee of the House Labor and Commerce Committee on February 17, 2011 voted to kill a bill (SB 1401) approved in the Virginia Senate that would have greatly improved unemployment insurance in Virginia and added some $130 million in federal funds to Virginia’s financially troubled unemployment trust fund. (See separate article on SB 1401).

Advocates for the unemployed were very disappointed with this ill designed and mean spiritied vote that will not ony hurt unemployed people in Virginia, but also keep $130 million from being added to Virginia unemployment fund which is mostly bankrupt, and now will force substantial increased employment taxes owing to the short fall in funds.

This vote unfortunately is a victory of an ideology of stupidity over practical improvements to both the State of Virginia’s precarious budget and to better treatment for Virginians who lose their jobs in the future. The bill would have given 26 more weeks of UI benefits to unemployed person finished training, UI benefits to part-time employees, and to employees who have to quit owing to a compelling family emergency.

No. Va. Unemployment advocacy group meets Monday, Jan. 31, 7:30 PM at the Arlington Central United Methodist Church (opposite Ballston Metrorail station in Arlington).

We invite all those who are unemployed to attend the unemployment advocacy group for unemployed persons in Northern Virginia to begin to work together for better unemployment benefits, public jobs, and self advocacy. Within Northern Virginia, there are about 70,000 persons officially unemployed, with additional thousands uncounted or only able to find part-time work. Only about one of every six unemployed persons in the region now get Virginia unemployment insurance (UI), and weekly insurance benefits amount to one-fourth of average wages paid in the region. Hunger is rising sharply as is homelessness owing to unemployment.

The group seeks to improve UI benefits for more unemployed people in Virginia, to start a pubic jobs program for the unemployed and improve other benefits to help those unemployed until they can find a full-time job. We will also provide information for emergency assistance for unemployed people needing rent, food or medical assistance.

Where: Arlington Central United Methodist Church
4201 Fairfax Drive, Arlington, VA 22203

When: Monday evening, 7:30 PM – 9 PM, January 31, 2011

For more information, email info@greensofarlington.org

On January 5, 2011, members of the Virginia General Assembly from Arlington held a public hearing of ideas from Arlington residents for possible legislative changes in the General Assembly session this year. Green member Steve Davis testified on behalf of Arlington Greens who have been working with unemployed people in Arlington, the vast majority of whom are ineligible for unemployment insurane (UI).

Support for the Unemployed
Good evening. My name is Stephen Davis, and I have lived in Arlington County for 33 years. I’m here tonight to speak on behalf of the Arlington Green Party in support of certain administrative and legislative actions designed to address the needs of the Commonwealth’s unemployed citizens.

As you may know, among the U.S. states and territories, the Commonwealth now ranks 52nd in the level of support and assistance provided to its unemployed citizens. Despite this dismal record, Virginia has Federal funding available through the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) mechanism that would help address its dire unemployment situation. These funds have been made available to all states and local jurisdictions yet the Commonwealth has only applied for these resources in a very limited approach that has generated only about 350 jobs. An expanded application for these funds would require no additional revenue contribution from the Commonwealth and apart from the humane benefits that the TANF funding provides, there is a pragmatic, fiscally sound reason for pursuing this funding as other states have done.

Moreover, applying for the TANF funding requires no legislative action. Instead, it simply requires an administrative decision by the Department of Social Services to apply for this resource and direct the available funding toward local jurisdictions. I therefore request that your respective offices contact the appropriate officials in the Department of Social Services to urge that agency to apply for these available funds. As key legislators and members of important committees, I am certain that a recommendation from you would carry great weight, especially if such an initiative was a group recommendation.

In addition I urge you to support modernization of the unemployment insurance system in the upcoming legislative session. Among other things, this proposed legislation would expand unemployment insurance coverage to include new workers and part-time employees. Not only will such action provide relief to the families of the unemployed, this additional coverage will support the local economies synergistically so that the social pathologies of increased unemployment, such as homelessness, increased drug use, and rising crime, can be avoided.

We fully understand that as legislators in Richmond you are fighting some lonely battles against entrenched, affluent, and established interests. We ask that you continue to fight for those who need a voice and that you use your legislative skills and strength to advocate for those living at the margin, not just in Arlington, or Northern Virginia, but throughout the Commonwealth.

On August 28 the Arlington Green Party sponsored a workshop on unemployment rights and benefits advocacy along with several Arlington faith communities, a union, and a George Mason University graduate students organization.

A panel comprised of Christian Dorsey, legislative director of the Economic Policy Institute, Christian Jones, assistant director of the Arlington Employment Center, and Jon Liss, executive director of the Alexandria Tenants and Workers United, spoke about the situation facing unemployed people in the U.S., Virginia, and Northern Virginia. After the panel, attendees discussed needed improvements in public jobs, unemployment insurance benefits and other assistance to the roughly 80,000 people who are unemployed in Northern Virginia currently.

A follow up meeting to schedule advocacy and specific programs will be held on Sept. 18, 2010, 10 AM, at the Arlington Central United Methodist Church (4201 Fairfax Drive, Arlington, VA 22203).

A group of Arlington Greens has been working with unemployed and homeless individuals in Arlington for the past 12 months. Their demands are a year round homeless shelter for adult men and women. They also want a public jobs program paying a living wage, so that the homeless can afford to move out of shelters into their own apartments and rebuild their lives.

Arlington Green Party leaders met several months ago with Arlington County Government officials, Congressman Jim Moran’s staff, and Senators Warner and Webb. They presented a paper proposing a $10 million program to employ up to 200 unemployed persons in green jobs that would weatherize and upgrade low income housing and public properties in Arlington (see attached paper on this website). Arlington County officials indicated they were interested in administering the program if federal funds could be obtained.

In June 2010, Greens learned that the State of Virginia had nearly $50 million in federal TANF Stimulus Funds that could be used for such a jobs program, but the State of Virginia Department of Social Services has prevented localities from using these funds. Right now these funds will probably go unused and be returned to the U.S. Government by September 30. Most other states have used their funds to create jobs–Pennsylvania, for example, but not Virginia!

It is pure insanity not to use all of the $50 million available to Virginia to create jobs–green jobs or any other type of job that does a social service to the community and provides training and a living wage to the unemployed. Is it the rigid anti-worker ideology of the Democrats and the Republicans in Virginia state government that has led to this stupidity or is it downright imcompetence?