24-04-2025
Unemployment recipients now eligible for 30 weeks of benefits
BOSTON (WWLP) – Massachusetts residents can now receive up to 30 weeks of unemployment benefits, and it is because of Springfield's climbing unemployment rate.
When any of the Bay State's seven metropolitan statistical areas' unemployment rates exceed 5.1% across a one-year average, this increase in benefits kicks in. Springfield was just reported to have an unemployment rate of 5.2%, making the increase mandated by a 2003 law to kick in.
Governor Healey recognizes Pediatric Organ Donation Week
The other six statistical areas measure under 5%, with Barnstable trailing closest to Springfield at 4.9% unemployment. Massachusetts is the only state in the nation to allow recipients to collect benefits for this long, and it is causing stakeholders like the National Federation of Independent Business to call for reform.
The state's unemployment rate is 0.8% higher than the national average, and the unemployment department predicts that the trust fund that pays for benefits, which is funded by a tax on employers, will go into the red in the next three years.
These unemployment rates are impacted by loss of private sector jobs, totaling almost 25,000 over the last year, and loss of 400 federal jobs, despite a 4,400 job increase for state government positions. The Mass Fiscal Alliance said the route to fixing this fiscal uncertainty is increasing private sector jobs.
'The state is doing serious long-term damage to its economic competitiveness,' said Paul Craney, Mass Fiscal's Executive Director. 'Massachusetts needs a private sector comeback, not more bureaucrats on the state payroll.'
Before this extension, unemployed individuals could receive benefits for up to 26 weeks.
WWLP-22News, an NBC affiliate, began broadcasting in March 1953 to provide local news, network, syndicated, and local programming to western Massachusetts. Watch the 22News Digital Edition weekdays at 4 p.m. on
Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
