Approved June 8, 2021

RESOLUTION OF THE GREATER UTICA CHAMBER OF COMMERCE IN SUPPORT OF ENDING ENHANCED UNEMPLOYMENT BENEFITS

WHEREAS, the enhanced unemployment benefits were initially created in early 2020 in response to the Covid 19 pandemic businesses closed and workers lost jobs; and

WHEREAS, more than sixty-five percent of the U.S. population is now vaccinated, new infections cases are rapidly diminishing, and most pandemic-related restrictions are being lifted;  and

WHEREAS, the enhanced payments are scheduled to expire September 6, 2021, as the economy continues to rebound;  and

WHEREAS, many employers across the country and here in New York and Oneida County are having difficulty filling vacant positions because potential employees are receiving, in some cases, more money to stay home than to work;  and

WHEREAS, twelve states have already ended enhanced unemployment benefits in order to eliminate financial incentives for people to stay home in lieu of working, and fourteen more states intend to end these benefits before the national deadline for the same reason;  and

WHEREAS, nearly 9 million job openings remain unfilled nationwide because many employers can’t afford to offer wages that can compete with the enhanced unemployment benefits;  and

WHEREAS, many local businesses in the Mohawk Valley Region are also finding it difficult to rehire needed employees even as the risks from the pandemic are steadily fading;

NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED, the Greater Utica Chamber of Commerce does support other calls for New York State to end the enhanced unemployment benefits immediately to further promote full employment and the rebuilding of the local, state, and national economies.