Real County Post

  • About Us
    • Hill Country Post
      • Newsletter
      • Our Lead Editor
      • Editors
      • Heroes
        • Hero Stories
        • Wall of Remembrance
    • Mission Transition
      • Related Posts
      • Website
    • Contact Us
  • News
    • Community
    • Finance
    • Food & Health
    • Lifestyle
    • Obituaries
    • Sports
  • Counties
    • Share a Local Story
      • Community Events
      • Community History
    • Bandera
      • Related Stories
      • Officials & Public Places
      • Local Churches
      • Parks
      • Did You Know …
    • Blanco
      • Related Stories
      • Officials & Public Places
      • Local Churches
      • Parks
      • Did You Know …
    • Edwards
      • Related Stories
      • Officials & Public Places
      • Local Churches
      • Parks
      • Did You Know …
    • Frio
      • Related Stories
      • Officials & Public Places
      • Local Churches
      • Parks
      • Did You Know …
    • Gillespie
      • Related Stories
      • Officials & Public Places
      • Local Churches
      • Parks
      • Did You Know …
    • Kendall
      • Related Stories
      • Officials & Public Places
      • Local Churches
      • Parks
      • Did You Know …
    • Kerr
      • Related Stories
      • Officials & Public Places
      • Local Churches
      • Parks
      • Did You Know …
    • Medina
      • Related Stories
      • Officials & Public Places
      • Local Churches
      • Parks
      • Did You Know …
    • Real
      • Related Stories
      • Officials & Public Places
      • Local Churches
      • Parks
      • Did You Know …
    • Uvalde
      • Related Stories
      • Officials & Public Places
      • Local Churches
      • Parks
      • Did You Know …
  • Shop
    • Cart 🛒
    • Checkout ⇒
  • Advertise Here
    • Submit Your Ad
    • Featured Block Ads
    • Free Business Ads
      • Agricultural
      • Business Services
      • Construction Services
      • Healthcare Providers
      • Hunting & Fishing
      • Lodging & Recreational
      • Personal Care
      • Real Estate
      • Restaurants & Markets
      • Retail & Miscellaneous
  • Listings
  • Account

In Texas, the lowest-income workers don’t qualify for additional unemployment aid

By Mitchell Ferman at Texas Tribune, August 26, 2020

Mark Saltillo was juggling.

It was Sunday night and his 9-year-old son was hungry, so Saltillo started on dinner while preparing for the first day of his last semester at El Paso Community College — at least he hopes it’s his last.

Money has been tight. There are electricity bills, groceries and $650 per month for rent. Books and school courses also cost money, which hasn’t been coming in like it had before August.

The 42-year-oldfull-time student, who hopes to get a job in counseling or social work,has been jobless since the coronavirus pandemic upended businesses in El Paso, and his part-time work checking tickets at local events dried up.

“I’m supposed to start school tomorrow,” Saltillo said Sunday night. “I’m just 12 credits away from graduating. But I’m already thinking about quitting so I could find a job full time or taking out some more student loans to have that extra money.”

Because Saltillo worked part-time jobs, the Texas Workforce Commission’s formula for determining unemployment benefit paymentscalculated that he receive $69 per week, the minimum amount available to Texans. It was no problem for Saltillo, though, afterCongress passed sweeping legislation in March that included anextra $600 per week foranyone receiving unemployment benefits.

“I was OK with that once I found out they were giving everyone 600 bucks,” Saltillo said. “That was fine, it worked out great.”

He rode a 4.0 grade-point average into his summer classes, received $600 each week, on top of the $69, and was a step closer to December graduation.

But when July ended, so did the $600 checks. The legislation expired, and Saltillo was left receiving $69 a week.

“Like $120-something every two weeks does nothing,” he said. “It’s hard because I got my son, so I can’t work full time.”

On Aug. 8, with Congress unable to agree on new legislation for additional unemployment payments for people jobless due to the coronavirus, President Donald Trump offered hope: $400 would be added to weekly unemployment checks for eligible recipients. But a subsequent announcement clarified that people would actually receive $300 per week, and an additional $100 if states decided to chip in that money. Texas opted not to do so.

And there was another caveat — anyone receiving less than $100 per week in jobless relief would not be eligible for the new $300.

“I was thinking all the way up to two or three days ago, I was expecting this money,” Saltillo said Sunday. “I was thinking, man, that’s five weeks, that’s 1,500 bucks, I could feed my son longer, you know what I mean?”

Like nearly 350,000 other Texans, Saltillo is not eligible for the extra payments.

“I’m not real big on politics, but I do vote Republican, I do support Trump,” Saltillo said. “But I really feel like this is a kick in my teeth, man.”

Some of the Texans who don’t qualify for the money get more than $100 a week from the state but are ineligible for the extra $300 because they did not indicate on their unemployment filings that they lost work because of the coronavirus pandemic.

The historic surge of people seeking unemployment benefits this year has made the TWC infamous for long wait times when people call the agency to file for unemployment or request payments. Some people weren’t clear on whether they qualified for the extra $300 but had a hard time finding out from the agency if they do.

Lena Blietz, who lost her job as a reporter in San Antonio in June, ran into that problem when she tried to contact TWC this month to see if she qualified.

“Because of my time covering coronavirus, I knew people were having trouble,” she said of the agency. “Then I saw it myself.”

After losing the $600 extra payment in July and scrambling to find out if she would get the new $300 federal payment, she learned that she was one of the lucky ones: She qualifies.

She said there are plenty of Texans who are in much worse shape than her, but her situation underscores how the pandemic has impacted every industry.

“It’s not just servers at restaurants and bars who are unemployed,” Blietz said. “Many people have it way worse than me, and I almost feel guilty talking about my situation. But just for anyone who isn’t aware of what’s going on, this is affecting people who you might not realize.”

Despite not receiving the extra money, Saltillo said he does not feel bad for himself. He just struggles to understand why the payments aren’t available for the people whomost desperately need assistance as the pandemic persists.

“What bothered me the most was like the principles of the matter,” Saltillo said. “It just doesn’t seem fair — like why they would do that to the group of people who really need it, you know?”

Saltillo has until early November to decide whether he will drop any courses. He’s taking a wait-and-see approach to figuring out whether student loans and $69 a week in unemployment he can sustain him and his son that long.

“So my plan is: If things aren’t working out, worst-case scenario, I’ll drop the class I’m doing worst in,” he said. “But I want to keep them all because I want to graduate.”

See the original article: https://www.texastribune.org/2020/08/26/unemployment-300-texas/

  • Share on Facebook
  • Share on Twitter
  • Share on Pinterest
  • Share via Email
  • Share on Tumblr
Aug 26, 2020Hill Country Post
2 years ago Current Events, Featured, Finance, Texas PoliticsCoronavirus, COVID-19, Mark Saltillo13
Hill Country Post
Kerrville-Area man gets 16th arrest in Kerr CountySan Antonio company that breeds exotic wildlife sued by ex-exec

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

 About Us 

A centralized state of the arts source of information for people who live, work or visit the Texas Hill Country. See About Us for more details.

 Recent News 
  • Severe storms brings cold front, more showers to S.A. Hill Country March 27, 2023
  • Texas Observer, legendary crusading liberal magazine, is closing and laying off its staff March 27, 2023
  • North Texas Car Shows, Car Cruises, Bike and Motorsport Events this Week – 3/27/2023 March 27, 2023
  • McNay Art Museum – ENTERTAINMENT & LEISURE: Art Gallery March 26, 2023
 Contact Us 

Share your Hill Country stories with us. We gladly welcome community input and suggestions for articles on our website.

Phone: (210) 568-1568

Email: editor@hillcountrypost.org

Follow Us on Social Media
Follow Us on FacebookFollow Us on TwitterFollow Us on InstagramFollow Us on Gab
Visitors:
2019 - 2021 © Hill Country Post | A Community-Based Initiative of the Mission Transition Foundation A 501(c)(3) Public Non-profit | Terms & Conditions | Powered by Fidelity Partners Website Designs

Make a pit stop at our Hill Country Community Shop 🛍️ Dismiss