As others have already noted, Washington State has one of the healthiest unemployment insurance systems in the nation. But such is not the case in many other states. This summer, ProPublica explored what’s at stake for millions of unemployed workers across the U.S.:
Unemployment Insurance Buckles After Years of Underfunding: Skyrocketing unemployment has left our unemployment system in crisis, but many of the current problems have been brewing under the surface for years. ProPublica’s series on the problems of — and potential fixes for — our ailing system begins here. | ProPublica
States’ Unemployment Insurance Funds Founder After Years of Poor Planning: It used to be, unemployment insurance meant a sturdy back and a jalopy big enough to fit the whole family. That changed in 1935, when the government started offering unemployment insurance, and states began to save when times were good so there was money to spend to help workers and stimulate the economy when times were bad. In all but a handful of states, it no longer works that way. | ProPublica
Is Your State’s Unemployment System in Danger?: As part of our investigation into unemployment insurance, here’s a look at how individual state systems compare. Thanks to a historical compromise, each state has its own unemployment insurance system, and they come in 51 different flavors — one for each state and Washington, D.C. (Puerto Rice and the Virgin Islands technically make it 53.) | ProPublica
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