4 States End Unemployment Benefits Today

The move by many states to cancel unemployment programs early to spur hiring doesn’t appear to be working.

According to new data from Indeed, job seekers in states that will eliminate those programs over the next week haven’t accelerated their online searches for new jobs.

Jed Kolko, Indeed’s chief economist stated, “We’re not seeing an increase in relative search activity in states where those opt-outs begin to take effect. In those states, there’s actually been a decline in relative search activity.”

Alaska, Iowa, Mississippi, and Missouri are the first four states to cancel the programs beginning June 12th.

Job search activity in those states increased in mid-May after they announced plans to cancel the programs, rising 4% from the national job search level in late April.

But search activity fell back quickly and is now down 4% from those levels.

Hopefully, there more opportunities become available to those states.

Meanwhile, as Congress has yet to approve of a nationwide $15 national wage, some universities have continued to raise their own minimum wages.