With only a few months left in the year, it is almost certain that 2020 will mark the largest annual job loss in Connecticut’s history going back to 1960 due to the pandemic and, according to research, it is likely Connecticut will have a long and slow employment recovery. Connecticut’s ...
The Connecticut Department of Labor released Thursday job numbers for September showing a loss of 5,200 non-farm jobs in the state. “Connecticut saw job losses in September for the third month in a row and our three month average of total non-farm jobs saw its first decline this year,” Andy Condon, director of the DOL Office of Research, said in a statement.
Connecticut businesses drop unemployment appeals or fail to show up for hearings 40 percent of the time, according to state figures, driving the low success rate for employer appeals found in a recent association report. Strategic Services on Unemployment & Workers' Compensation, a nationwide association of employers, recently reported that Connecticut employers have one of the lowest success rates in the country. Data provided by Chief Appeals Officer Ralph Dorsey shows that employers frequently decide not to follow through on their appeals, contributing to their low success rate.
The minimum yearly earnings needed to be qualified for unemployment benefits in Connecticut is $600, the third lowest requirement in the nation. The law was set in place in 1967 and has not been raised since. Adjusted for inflation, this figure would be $4,277.82 by today’s standards. A bill before the state Senate would raise Connecticut’s work requirement to $2,000 yearly and make several other adjustments to its unemployment calculations to put the state on equal footing with its neighbors.