People Making Over $100K Received Unemployment Benefits in 2011, Media Mum

NewsBusters.org ^ | April 29, 2013 | Noel Sheppard

[Kaslin]

With all the media panic about sequestration, one would think a study finding billions of dollars of fraud in a government program would be national news.

Apparently not, for with few exceptions, a report published by the St. Louis Federal Reserve last week finding $3.3 billion in fraudulent unemployment claims in 2011 got almost no attention:

The unemployment insurance program in the U.S. offers benefits to workers if they lose their jobs through no fault of their own. In 2011, this program cost $108 billion, of which nearly $3.3 billion was spent on overpayments due to fraud.

Unemployment insurance fraud occurs when an ineligible individual collects benefits after intentionally misreporting his or her eligibility. Recent headlines have brought attention to extreme forms of fraud, such as the collection of unemployment benefits by prisoners. The dominant form of unemployment insurance fraud, however, is what's called concealed earnings fraud. This fraud occurs when individuals collect unemployment benefits while they are employed and are earning wages. The overpayments due to concealed earnings accounted for almost $2.2 billion in 2011, two-thirds of the total overpayments due to all categories of fraud. [...]

Among those committing concealed earnings fraud, 18,000 (roughly 20 percent) earned less than $300 per week, and 12,000 (14 percent) earned more than $900 per week.

[Kaslin]

Only in the 0bama administration is this possible

[American in Israel]

When your job is to control the handing out of payments, and your fraud rate is in the thousands of millions of dollars, One would think in a sane world that a few more would join the unemployment line seeking jobs that they CAN do.

[shelterguy]

“”The unemployment insurance program in the U.S. offers benefits to workers if they lose their jobs through no fault of their own. In 2011, this program cost $108 billion”””

As an employer I know that I pay a ton of money into the fund, as do all employers.

[bigbob]

Not really just under Obama. There’s always been fraud, it’s just more acceptable now, because it’s “their fair share”.

But this requires a person to break the law, to commit fraud.

Worse, in my opinion, are the giveaway programs that don’t even require “means testing”, i.e. no proof of income or need. You can make a million dollars a year and have 10 million in the bank and still stand in line with your basket and get free food, for example, from some gummint-giveaway programs. These don’t require anyone to break a law, just to have no moral standards or values. Yet the result is the same - a waste of taxpayer dollars.

[molson209]

do they ever claw back this money ?

[cuban leaf]

I made over 100k one year but still collected unemployment. I was unemployed at the time. I’m not getting the problem here, as it relates to the headline. And reading the excerpt didn’t help.

[svcw]

If you are unemployed you receive unemployment benefits, what difference does it make what your salary was before being unemployed.

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[crz]

If your employer paid in to it for you, you get to collect, plain and simple. But, the problem here is, some like to take part time employment for cash under the table and continue collecting. So for some, they actually can make more on unemployment than if they were working.

[Sacajaweau]

Contractors do it all the time here in Upstate NY. They work 6 months and collect the other 6 months. Nice racket.

[driftdiver]

Yep and the rates are higher than I’ve ever paid before.

[Robert DeLong]

Only in the 0bama administration is this possible

If you mean not reported by the press that is probably true. However, I wouldn't be surprised if they audited previous years that this was going on then as well.

[kevkrom]

I made over 100k one year but still collected unemployment. I was unemployed at the time. I’m not getting the problem here, as it relates to the headline. And reading the excerpt didn’t help.

It's talking about people who collect unemployment fraudulently while also working; while in most of those cases, the fraudster isn't making much money, there are some cases where he or she is pulling down six figures and still collecting unemployment, from what I gather.

[cuban leaf]

Yeah. I just thought the title was poorly worded.

[shelterguy]

Unemployment fraud is HUGE. You have people that collect and then get a job and “forget” to inform the unemployment office. And as others have said people collect benefits and work for cash. If caught, they have to pay it back with penalties and interest. There are tip lines in most states to rat these people out.

Also , identity theft is huge in the unemployment benefits world. If I steal your identity I can file for unemployment, collect until it is discovered and have a slim chance of getting caught. There are major theft rings doing this all over the country.

Since there is no face to face contact at the unemployment office anymore it is very easy to do.

[B4Ranch]

>>Worse, in my opinion, are the giveaway programs that don’t even require “means testing”, i.e. no proof of income or need. <<

You believe that I should not collect from a fund that I contribute to all of my working years because I don’t live high on the hog and am a successful investor.

You remind me of Congress. Voting to give my tax dollars to other countries or to victims of natural disasters without ever checking to verify that the money will be used judiciously.