Out of work and full of worry
Call for renewed federal aid not likely to be heard


By Imran Vittachi
Chicago Tribune staff reporter

December 20, 2003

Cecil Sells considers himself one of the "luckier" ones, even though
he's been jobless since September, laid off from his $50,000-a-year job
as a pre-press operator in Carol Stream.

*Others have had it tougher for a lot longer. In November, the long-term
unemployed were out of work for an average of more than 20 weeks, the
highest it has been since January 1984, according to the Bureau of Labor
Statistics.*

Sells, 45, of Sycamore, said he is not encouraged by the Bush
administration's claims that the economy is improving.

"Maybe that's happening in some never-never land," said Sells. "But if I
don't find a job by March, I may have to sell my house or find other
measures to feed my family."

In March, his weekly state unemployment check of $331, which goes toward
supporting him and his wife and helps pay on his son's college loans,
will run out.

Sells was among a small group of unemployed Illinois residents who
joined leaders of anti-poverty organizations and Rep. Jan Schakowsky
(D-Ill.), to call on the Bush administration and the
Republican-controlled Congress to renew federal benefits. A lifeline
lasting 13 weeks, the benefits kick in after state support runs out, but
the package is set to expire Sunday.

"The Grinch is back [this Christmas]," Schakowsky said at the Friday
press conference, which was sponsored by the local chapter of the
AFL-CIO at a church in the Loop.

She said President Bush, together with House Speaker Dennis Hastert and
their fellow Republicans, were now "toasting each other for this
supposed economic recovery."

*"They're ignoring the 8.7 million unemployed workers and those who are
about to lose their benefits," Schakowsky said.*

Last Christmas, Bush extended benefits into the new year. But this time
that appears unlikely; Congress has adjourned for the holidays.

"There seems to be more resistance from the Republican Congress than
last year," said Ross Eisenbrey, vice president of the Economic Policy
Center, a Washington think tank. "Without presidential intervention,
this time Congress won't renew it."

Despite encouraging reports from the Department of Labor that the
national economy may be pulling out of its morass, and that the
nationwide unemployment rate is finally dipping, the outlook for
recovery in Illinois isn't so bright.

While nationwide unemployment fell in November to 5.9 percent, it stood
at 6.7 percent in Illinois. In some pockets Downstate, the rate ranges
between 7 percent and 10 percent, said Margaret Blackshere, head of the
Chicago AFL-CIO.

Eisenbrey and others say this is no time to terminate the benefits,
known as Temporary Extended Unemployment Compensation. November's
long-term unemployment rate eclipsed the average of 15.4 weeks set in
March 2002, when the benefits took hold.

"The notion that the economy is turning around and that this is no
longer needed is just wrong," said Eisenbrey. He pointed to long-term
unemployment indicators, which in November were higher than in March
2002, when the federal benefits were introduced. "It should at least be
extended for another six months."

The White House, and the offices of Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist
(R-Tenn.) and House Majority Leader Tom DeLay (R-Texas), did not respond
Friday to requests for comment.
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