Texas Unemployment News (2021)

Texas Unemployment

We have aggregated highlights of Texas Unemployment News – bringing you updates to essential reports and analysis on a single page, so you can stay informed on what’s happening regarding Texas Unemployment Benefits. We cover Unemployment benefit changes, pandemic benefit extensions, Latest TWC News, Texas Unemployment eligibility changes, lawsuits, Benefits Services website issues, TWC Unemployment debit card problems, and more.

You will find below highlights taken from each story, the date of the story, and a link below to the complete story if you want to read more.

If you want to suggest a story for us to include in this feed, let us know in the comments section below.

"Texas Unemployment News"

Better Late Than Never: Texas Workforce Commission Gets A Phone Messaging System

(CBS DFW) – When Yovanne Boggs desperately needed to reach the Texas Workforce Commission last year to report her unemployment account had been hacked, she got a busy signal.

“Someone had changed the bank account information and was stealing my money,” explained the Dallas resident. “I called hundreds of times and couldn’t get anybody on the phone.”

Boggs was not alone.

The TWC handles the state’s unemployment claims and when unemployment spiked last spring, its outdated phone and computer systems were overwhelmed and ill-prepared.

Thousands of unemployed Texans were delayed benefits because they were unable to reach the state agency.

September 16, 2021 – Click here to read the full story.

Hybrid career fair set for Sept. 22

(The American Legion)

The American Legion is working with the Texas Veterans Commission and Texas Workforce Commission for a hybrid (in person and virtual) career fair on Sept. 22. The event will be open to all veterans, transitioning servicemembers, active duty, National Guard, reservists, and military spouses.

The in-person portion will take place at the Omni Austin Hotel, 4140 Governors Row, Ballroom D, Austin, TX 78744 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. CDT.

Job seekers can register to attend in person by clicking here.

Employers can register to attend in person by clicking here.

The virtual component, which will include local, national and worldwide employers, will be open from noon to 3 p.m. CDT to all veterans, transitioning servicemembers, active duty, National Guard, reservists, and military spouses.

Job seekers can register for the virtual career fair by clicking here. A resume must be submitted during the registration process.

Employers can register for the virtual career fair by clicking here.

September 16, 2021 – Click here to read the full story.

VERIFY: Unemployment benefits and vaccine mandates

(CBS 19) – COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy is becoming much more than just a topic of medical conversation.

President Joe Biden has required vaccination for millions of federal and private workers and many companies are making it mandatory on their own.

People who don’t want to get the shot are afraid of what will happen if it costs them their jobs.

September 14, 2021 – Click here to read the full story.

Ted Cruz to millions losing unemployment benefits: ‘Um, get a job?’

(The Hill) – Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) reacted to news of millions of Americans losing their unemployment benefits over the weekend by suggesting out-of-work people should “get a job.”

In a tweet sent late Monday night, Cruz shared with his followers a headline from The Associated Press reading “Jobless Americans have few options as benefits expire.”

“Um, get a job?” Cruz commented. “There are millions of vacancies, and small businesses across the Nation are desperate for workers.

September 7, 2021 – Click here to read the full story.

Texas Is Underfunding Unemployment To Keep Business Taxes Low. Now It Owes $7 Billion And Counting.

(Texas Public Radio) – Texas leaders had long known they weren’t charging businesses enough unemployment insurance tax to ride out a deep, job-killing recession like the one last year.

The state was slammed with two years worth of unemployment claims in the first two months of the COVID-19 pandemic. The surge quickly drained the state’s Unemployment Insurance Trust Fund.

The federal government bailed out Texas and 22 other states. The feds footed some amount of the bill for out-of-work Texans in 10 of the past 18 months, at a cost of $7 billion.

September 6, 2021 – Click here to read the full story.

How many people will lose unemployment benefits in Texas after they end in September?

(AS English) – Texas has always given 26 weeks of jobless assistance historically.

However, when the global pandemic burst in April 2020 with most of workplaces closed, unemployment rates grew violently over 12.8% becoming state’s highest rate since 1986 when it nearly topped 10%.

The concern on how the pandemic was going to affect the residents’ finances triggered Gov. Greg Abbott to pass extended benefits of up to 13 additional weeks during periods of unemployment which surpass a 6.5 percent threshold.

Nevertheless, with the current state’s unemployment rate falling below the threshold, at 6.2 percent, according to the US Department of Labor, there is no need to continue with the extension.

August 29, 2021 – Click here to read the full story.

Extended unemployment benefits for jobless Texans will end in September, state agency says

(The Texas Tribune) – Texas will soon stop paying extended benefits because of a decline in the state’s unemployment rate, the Texas Workforce Commission announced Thursday.

The state has historically given unemployed Texans 26 weeks of assistance, but job losses during the COVID-19 pandemic triggered extended benefits, which provides an additional 13 weeks of benefits during periods of high state or national unemployment.

August 26, 2021 – Click here to read the full story.

‘No evidence’: State cuts in jobless aid have little effect on unemployment

(Politico) – Only eight of the 26 states that cut off federal jobless benefits early saw a statistically significant drop in unemployment in July, government data released Friday shows, undermining a key Republican argument for ending the enhanced aid.

Nine states and the District of Columbia that did not end the benefits also saw statistically significant declines in unemployment, muddying the waters as economists and policymakers search for any indication that the decision by some governors to discontinue emergency unemployment insurance before its Sept. 6 expiration date might have had broader ramifications for the labor market.

“There’s no sign of the end of supplemental UI” affecting employment, said Mark Zandi, chief economist at Moody’s Analytics. “There’s just no evidence.”

The governors who made the move, mostly in Republican-controlled states, cited employer complaints about worker shortages, some of which they attributed to generous unemployment benefits.

August 20, 2021 – Click here to read the full story.

Texas Unemployment News Summary

We hope this post on Texas Unemployment News was helpful.

Still Have Questions?

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Get answers to your most pressing Texas Unemployment Questions – Click here: Texas Unemployment Benefits FAQs.

For the Texas Unemployment Handbook, click here: Texas Unemployment Benefits Handbook.

If you have further questions about Texas Unemployment Benefits or Unemployment Debit Card, you can fill out the comment form below and we will answer your question ASAP.

Be sure to check out our other articles on Unemployment Benefits, including:
Whether Unemployment Benefits are Taxable
List of States Extending Unemployment Benefits
Massachusetts DUA Unemployment Debit Card
How to file for Unemployment (in all 50 States)
Unemployment office Phone Number (All 50 States)