On unemployment, Tim Michels suggests he would support shortening benefit time period
Molly Beck
MADISON - Republican candidate for governor Tim Michels is suggesting he would as governor shorten the timeframe Wisconsin residents may receive unemployment benefits should they lose their job — calling for changes to eliminate what he's calling "an entire class of lazy people” created during the coronavirus pandemic.
Michels’ position is a contrast to Democratic incumbent Gov. Tony Evers, who vetoed a bill earlier this year that would shorten the timeframe the unemployed could receive benefits in times of economic prosperity, citing a desire to not create new hardships for those who lose their jobs through no fault of their own.
"It doesn't take 26 weeks to find a job in this day and age. Help wanted signs are everywhere. It probably takes about 2.6 hours to find a job," Michels said during an interview at the Rotary Club of Milwaukee on Tuesday.
In an Oct. 14 debate with Evers, Michels said if elected "we're going to get people off of their couches and get them back to work. We created an entire class of lazy people during COVID. And it's time to get them back engaged in our economy, to stop just sending them the unemployment checks and COVID subsidy checks, which I know are now gone, but they were getting them and that's how they got lazy."
A spokeswoman for Michels did not answer what length of time he believes benefits should be available to unemployed residents.
Department of Workforce Development spokeswoman Jennifer Sereno described a different employment picture in the state, saying over the last year "Wisconsin has achieved record low unemployment, a record high number of people employed and record lows in initial and continuing weekly unemployment claims."
Wisconsin's unemployment rate was 3.1% as of August, just below the national rate of 3.7%, which amounts to 96,300 people in Wisconsin who are unemployed. About 16,000 more people were recorded as jobless a year ago, according to the DWD. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, there are 167,000 open jobs in Wisconsin.
Sereno said the average duration for people to receive regular unemployment benefits totaled 16 weeks based on a rolling average between July 2021 and June.
More:Takeaways from the only debate between Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers and challenger Tim Michels
Under a Republican-authored bill proposed last legislative session, the unemployed could receive regular benefits for up to 14 weeks — down from the current timeframe of 26 weeks. Under the proposal, the number of weeks of benefits that would be available would rise along with the unemployment rate, topping out at 26 weeks when the unemployment rate is at 9% or higher.
"(With) the economic climate we have right now, there's no reason that someone should need a half a year to find a good, high-quality paying job as they’re around every corner," Republican Rep. Alex Dallman of Green Lake said at the time he introduced the bill.
Evers said in a veto message he objected to "adding more barriers for individuals applying for and receiving economic assistance through programs largely designed to provide support when individuals and families are experiencing economic hardship."
Other bills Assembly Republicans passed earlier this year would have put in place more drug testing and work requirements for unemployment benefits and food stamps, cut off unemployment benefits for those who don’t show up for job interviews, and suspended people’s access to public health insurance if they turn down job offers.
Sereno said the state's current unemployment system "was established to support workforce stability, promote workforce participation and diminish economic volatility."
"The benefits paid to workers also diminish economic volatility because the money is used to buy groceries, pay rent, cover utilities, etc. This is turn supports other businesses," Sereno said by email. "The benefits are not considered sufficient to support an individual or family long-term, thus incentivizing a return to work."
Assembly Speaker Robin Vos, R-Rochester, has said he would bring back all legislation Evers vetoed if Michels is elected.
During a 2021 debate over whether to tighten unemployment rules, Vos said he would also like to see the state do more to withhold benefits from people who bypass the state's requirement to look for jobs, in order to boost the workforce and create accountability for the system.
“It seems like in Wisconsin we do not do a very good job of, number one, making it easy for an employer to report a no-show for an interview and then doing anything about it,” Vos said during a June 2021 roundtable discussion on worker shortages at Wisconsin Manufacturers & Commerce in Madison.
Molly Beck can be reached at molly.beck@jrn.com.