Congressional Republicans are pushing governors to stop paying out $300-per-week federal unemployment supplements that businesses say is handcuffing the post-pandemic recovery — and to use the cash for “back-to-work bonuses” instead.
House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy launched the messaging effort hours after the Biden administration put the onus on struggling businesses to woo employees back to the workplace with higher wages.
“Our local job creators should not have to compete with the federal government for workers,” McCarthy wrote in a letter signed by Reps. Steve Scalise (R-La.), Kevin Brady (R-Tex.), and Jackie Walorski (R-Ind.) — three states whose governors have resisted the complaints of business owners who say the extra federal cash is keeping job-seekers home.
Last week’s unexpectedly dismal jobs-growth report added fuel to those concerns.
“Operation Warp Speed paved the way to defeating COVID-19,” McCarthy tweeted Friday. “Now is the time to reconnect workers with jobs so temporary job losses do not become permanent ones.”
At least 14 states — Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, Georgia, Idaho, Iowa, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, North Dakota, Ohio, South Carolina, Tennessee and Wyoming — have announced plans to reject the federal supplement.
Some governors, including Montana Gov. Greg Gianforte, say they will use the funds to give $1,200 “return-to-work” bonuses to those who rejoin the labor force instead.
McCarthy’s letter was directed at the 36 states — including New York — that are sticking with the supercharged unemployment checks, which are set to continue until September under President Biden’s COVID-19 stimulus.