Bonus Army: Pay workers for finding a job, not for staying unemployed.

After a national economic shutdown and the self-imposed mass unemployment, some American businesses are now struggling to hire workers again. Job openings rose sharply, to 6.6 million, in July, returning to pre-pandemic levels. At the same time, a massive reallocation of resources has taken place across economic sectors—one that is far from complete. Rather than delaying the process of adjustment, public policy can help smooth the transition.

The pandemic economy in the spring and early summer was characterized by lockdown and reopening. Policy was aimed at providing liquidity to individuals and businesses to keep them afloat during the economic disruption. The federal CARES Act provided an additional $600 per week in unemployment benefits, which meant that most unemployed workers earned more from the benefits than they did when working. This policy helped support the incomes and consumption of unemployed workers, and during the lockdowns the disincentive effects were likely small. Recent research fails to find any negative impact on employment from these enhanced benefits.

Now, however, most of the businesses that will reopen have done so already, while an increasing share of temporary business closures have turned permanent—yet the policy debate remains stuck on the same goal of providing liquidity, especially when it comes to unemployment insurance. Additional support may be needed, since unemployment remains high, though it has declined substantially. But the main goal now should be to get workers back on the job, rather than subsidizing prolonged spells of unemployment.

Here are the facts: 1.) The two week bend the curve destroyed many business, large and small, particularly small businesses. The two weeks became months.

2.) The businesses that have been most impacted are mostly in states with Democrat governors and there have been even greater restrictions in cities with Democrat mayors.

3.) There are more jobs available now than people to fill them.

4.) If you want a job, you can get a job. It just might not be the job you want. But that is better than unemployment.

5.) Now bear with me on this point, 8.4% unemployment is acceptable. A good 10 to 15% of people should not be working because they their work sucks. In fact, they are such lousy workers that we call the employees. They cost businesses more than what they produce. They are a part of the natural business cycle. When businesses expand during good economic times (prior to the China Virus) they hire additional people. A percentage of those people are last resort hirings. They are dead weight. The long-term workers end up working harder and longer to make up for the dead weight. Now they are proving they are dead weight because jobs are available and they rather receive unemployment.

6.) Keep government out of business. If anything make states and cities run by Democrats pay for the mess they made. Don't punish the rest of America for lazy asses. It's bad enough we have to work with them when times are good.

How about giving nothing so people have to go out and get jobs?

I know it’s hard for Americans today to believe but none of this existed at one time. Unemployment. Stimulus checks. Bailouts.

See the Great depression for further details.

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