Indiana residents sue governor for ending Covid-19 unemployment benefits prematurely

Indiana is among the 25 states that are dropping at least one of the three pandemic unemployment insurance programs that were enacted in March 2020 and extended twice to support people during the pandemic.

PRETORIA, June 21 (ANA) – Jobless residents in Indiana are challenging Governor Eric Holcomb’s decision to cease Covid-19 unemployment benefits three early months early, USA Today reported on Monday.

Holcomb’s intends to end the $300 a week from the federal unemployment programme in June instead of September.

In a story on its website, the daily newspaper says that without the federal pandemic unemployment benefits, many Indiana residents, say they would have had to choose between finding a job and taking care of their children, face evictions, forgo medical care and grapple with devastating financial setbacks that can derail their lives.

“We’ll have to decide which utility bill to pay, which household items to let go of… We’ll have to change what kind of shampoo we use, what kind of toilet paper we use,’’ Shanon Singer-Mann was quoted as saying.

The publication says Singer-Mann hasn’t worked at her restaurant job since Covid-19 began because her son suffers from a lung disease and brain tumour.

“It’s not black and white. Everybody’s story is not the same. I’m not going back to work, not at the risk of my son’s life,’’ Singer- Mann told the publication.

She hopes that a ruling in her favour will allow her to support her family as she completes her high school education so she can find remote work like data entry, USA Today wrote.

According to CNN, residents filed the lawsuit last week Monday. In the lawsuit, Indiana Legal Services and a private employment law firm argue that the governor’s move violates a state law that requires Indiana to procure all available federal insurance benefits to citizens.

The US news channel says Indiana is among the 25 states that are dropping at least one of the three pandemic unemployment insurance programmes enacted in March 2020 and extended twice to support people during the pandemic.

Republican governors say the expanded benefits are keeping the unemployed from accepting job offers, CNN wrote.

“There are help wanted signs posted all over Indiana, and while our economy took a hit last year, it is roaring like an Indy 500 race car engine now,” Holcomb was quoted as saying last month.

The broadcaster citied Holcomb saying that there were 116,000 positions available.

“I am hearing from multiple sector employers that they want and need to hire more Hoosiers to grow.”

CNN said democratic lawmakers and consumer advocates have appealed to the US Department of Labour to prevent the 25 states from pulling out of the federal unemployment programmes, arguing that many Americans are still having trouble finding suitable jobs or can’t work because of child care or health-related issues due to the pandemic.

But an administration official told CNN that there is nothing the agency can do.

– African News Agency (ANA); Editing by Naomi Mackay