Friday, 07 May 2021_South Carolina Governor Henry McMaster has called for an end to the federal unemployment benefit programs related to the pandemic by the end of June this year.
The Republican governor of the southeastern US state announced the order in a bid to help address workforce shortages in the state, which he blamed on federal unemployment benefits.
“South Carolina’s businesses have borne the brunt of the financial impact of the COVID-19 pandemic,” he wrote in a letter to the head of state’s employment and workforce department.
“Those businesses that have survived — both large and small, and including those in the hospitality, tourism, manufacturing, and health care sectors — now face an unprecedented labor shortage.”
McMaster said the additional unemployment benefits had “turned into a dangerous federal entitlement,” putting the blame on the Biden administration for not realizing its effects on the state.
“These federal entitlements pose a clear and present danger to the health of our State’s businesses and to our economy,” he noted.
“Since the Biden administration and Congress appear to have little to no comprehension of the damage being done and no appetite to terminate the federal payments, the State of South Carolina must take action.”
The decision came two days after Montana Governor Greg Gianfort made the same decision in his state.
The Republican governors of both states say the jobless programs are deterring people from returning to the workforce, causing creating labor shortages.
According to a recent report, millions of Americans are living in dire conditions as some US states are too overwhelmed to tackle their immense backlogs of unemployment application.
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