Unemployment benefits were implemented under the Social Security Act off 1935 to help workers who become involuntarily employed.
The idea was that businesses would be taxed to pay for unemployment benefits for former employees who were fired, laid off or otherwise lose their job due to business closures and other decisions beyond their control. The funds would be paid on a limited basis and for a limited time period while a worker actively searched for a new job.
A worker who quit and walked off the job or who voluntarily decided not to work was not to receive any financial compensation.
Fast forward to 2025, and at least one liberal state lawmaker from Spokane sees it differently.
Democrat Sen. Marcus Riccelli wants well-paid union workers to be able to receive unemployment benefits when they voluntarily walk off the job.
He wants to pay workers to stand on the sidewalk with picket signs, while those workers attempt to disrupt or destroy a business. And if they’re a public employee, like a teacher, he would pay them to picket rather than order them back to the classroom as required by law.
Riccelli pre-filed Senate Bill 5041 on Dec. 13. If signed into law, the bill would require the state to pay unemployment benefits to workers who voluntarily walk off the job and strike. Union workers could apply for unemployment benefits two weeks after they voluntarily walk off the job.
Riccelli says his bill levels the playing field between employers and workers. According to Riccelli, workers would retain their “right to strike” without having to face foreclosure, bankruptcy or other major financial implications.
He’s wrong.
With rights come responsibilities. So, workers who choose to walk off the job also have the responsibility to bear the financial responsibility that go with their decision.
This bill doesn’t level the playing field, it puts employers and taxpayers on the hook. It would pay whiners who demand more money, whether they’ve earned it or not.
Taxpayers face a double-whammy if public employees walk off the job. Not only would they have to pony up for unemployment benefits, they would also lose access to services for they’ve already paid.
The law does not exempt public employees, not even those barred from striking under state law, such as teachers and law enforcement officers. It does allow for recovery of funds if a “final judgment” from a lawsuit determines a strike is illegal.
In the meantime, taxpayers foot the bill for those who make more money and own fancier cars houses.
There should be consequences for actions, especially those that willfully attempt to extort higher wages from employers and taxpayers.
According to the federal Bureau of Labor Statistics, union workers are paid 15.9% more than non-union workers in the same field. And that’s not counting the disparity between union-type jobs and general employment opportunities in our rural communities.
Union jobs in our part of the world generally pay well over $25 per hour; meanwhile, most jobs in our rural areas pay in the $17-18 range.
If common sense prevails, Riccelli’s bill will be a non-starter in Olympia. But given state government’s senseless move toward socialism in recent decades, it’s likely to get a hearing and maybe find a way to the governor’s desk.
That’s unfortunate.
Rather than kowtow to those who “think” they deserve more pay, state lawmakers would do well to require workers to prove their worth to employers instead of handing out checks.
Businesses are already hard-pressed to find good workers. This bill will only make it more difficult.
— Roger Harnack is the owner of Free Press Publishing. Email him at [email protected].
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