Gov. Gets Unemployment Comp Change Bill

June 14, 2011

Lawmakers on Monday sent Gov. Rick Scott an unemployment compensation bill (HB 7005) that reduces the length of benefits and ties the length of payments to the health of the market place.

The bill would reduce the maximum duration of state benefits from 26 weeks to 23 weeks if the unemployment rate remains above 10.5 percent. If the jobless rate drops below that, the duration of benefits declines gradually to a minimum of 12 weeks if unemployment gets as low as 5 percent. The unemployment rate in Florida in April was 10.8 percent.

Scott has 15 days to sign the bill, which has come under fire from unions while being applauded by businesses pressed to pay higher unemployment compensation rates following a protracted economic downturn. More importantly, business groups say the bill provides more protections for employers who fire workers for unsatisfactory performance.

Comments

6 Responses to “Gov. Gets Unemployment Comp Change Bill”

  1. tsk...tsk...tsk on June 17th, 2011 11:01 am

    Well……..once again I say — EDUCATE YOURSELF BEFORE YOU VOTE!!!!!
    Be careful what you ask for—-you just might get it.

    I am a staunch Republican—very conservative politically & for the first time in MANY, MANY years, I voted Democratic in the governor’s race. I felt it was the lesser of two evils.

  2. Sierra on June 16th, 2011 5:28 pm

    There’s a bill coming up that will allow Florida to become one of the 18 states that are already allowed to “fire” their governor…I hope it passes..Gov. Scott need to go..

  3. Black Night on June 14th, 2011 9:13 pm

    I certainly believe he’s getting his pockets lined by someone to be thinking this way. I’m currently on Unemployment, and I am actively searching for a job. But there’s one thing I have to worry about, it’s the area I live in. It is a rural area and there aren’t many jobs to go around. And with gas @ 3.56 a gal. there’s no way I can drive very far away to look for a job either. The Gov. really needs to think twice before he decides to signs this. He’s going to put more and more people on Food Stamps and other state paid programs ,which I have nothing against, because he took this money out of our pockets. Also, where do some of these business groups come off saying that this is going to protect them from people who get it unfairly. How does someone get it unfairly? The State talks to the employer to find out why the person was terminated, it makes no sense. Not to me at least.

  4. cardarenee on June 14th, 2011 11:26 am

    How do the people vote him out, I know we have up to a year to do so, if not we are stuck til he term is up.

  5. tamijane on June 14th, 2011 9:27 am

    I truly do not understand this man. He is privatizing all of the state prisons in Region IV (South FL) which contains approximately 16-19 facilities. It seems that his wife is a major stockholder in the private facility that will be taking them over. Isn’t that convienient? I am very sick of this man’s attack of State workers and now he wants to cut their unemployment! He has got to be the WORST Governor I have ever seen!

  6. sktmax on June 14th, 2011 8:54 am

    What exactly does rick Scott expect the jobless rates to do when the budget he just signed results in layoffs of thousands of state workers????