Involuntary Unemployment

In Yahoo News, they were talking about how serious a problem it is for those who have tried to find work, but have found it nearly impossible to find any.  Republicans are about to pull the one thing the unemployed do have. Unemployment Insurance.  I’ve been there, but I was fortunate in that I had a teaching certificate, and could sub.  Today substitution work pays only about $40.00 a day, and you have to be lucky to catch a job every day. Although in the end, I was a regular sub. They plugged me in anywhere. It was not the best of work, but at least it was work.  Robert Klein, the Comedian/Actor, did sub work to supplement what work he had.

Not everyone is as fortunate, as I had been. Some people, and this was true in Indiana, graduated high school, and from there went directly into the steel mills.  Now, the steel mills are gone.  They were one of the largest employers of those living on both sides of the state line; Indiana, and Illinois.  What if you are 50, or in your early 60’s.  Older, but not old enough to retire, and the only work experience you have is working in the Mills.  Going back to school, if you were  younger is a choice, but by the time you got a degree or a new skill, you would be even older. And employers would be less interested in hiring you.  This is the problem..