AUGUSTA — Labor union representatives, advocates and Maine state workers changes need to be made to the state’s unemployment compensation system to make it more efficient and fair. A special commission established last spring took public testimony Thursday. Republican Gov. Paul LePage set up the commission in April to examine the system of paying benefits […]
unemployment
New jobs disproportionately low-pay or part-time
WASHINGTON (AP) — The 162,000 jobs the economy added in July were a disappointment. The quality of the jobs was even worse. A disproportionate number of the added jobs were part-time or low-paying — or both. Part-time work accounted for more than 65 percent of the positions employers added in July. Low-paying retailers, restaurants and […]
Audits cite serious problems in the state’s day-to-day operations
That’s because the state has no well-documented disaster recovery plan and doesn’t run periodic disaster tests. Thousands of Mainers may be taking advantage of the unemployment system run by the Maine Department of Labor, forcing the state to spend millions of dollars more than it should. Or not. No one really knows. One-third of the […]
LePage says latest unemployment numbers show his policies are working
AUGUSTA — Republican Gov. Paul LePage touted the fact that Maine’s unemployment rate in June remained at 6.8 percent, which is the lowest since the recession struck in November 2008, as an indication that his fiscal policies are boosting Maine’s private sector. LePage said new data show the unemployment rate stood at 6.8 percent in […]