Workers in states that are scrapping the extra $300-a-week in federal unemployment benefits started searching for jobs on the day their states announced the moves, according to a new report.
On the day states said they would end the checks, which critics say are making it hard for businesses to hire workers as they struggle to recover from the pandemic — clicks for job postings spiked by 5 percent, compared to the last two weeks of April, according to a Friday report from Indeed.com.
From announcement day to three days later, the states in which benefits are ending early received a 3- to 4-percent boost in job search clicks compared to the national average, according to the report. By the eighth day after the announcement, search interest had “vanished,” it said.
The most sought-after jobs were in marketing, sales, hospitality and tourism. But searches for high-paying jobs, including physicians and surgeons, also spiked, according to the report.
Two dozen states are ending the $300 weekly unemployment benefits as soon as June — and well before Sept. 6 when they officially run out nationwide. Some states, including Arizona, Oklahoma and Montana, are also offering bonuses for residents who return to work.
