Turk File

Louisiana's unemployed are getting a raw deal

by Patrick Flanagan

It's a good thing Louisiana has one of the lowest jobless rates in the country, because our treatment of the unemployed is considered among the worst.

It's a good thing Louisiana has one of the lowest jobless rates in the country, because our treatment of the unemployed is considered among the worst.

In a recently released report, the financial news site 24/7 Wall Street ranked Louisiana as the 9th worst state to be unemployed, right between 8th ranked Georgia and 10th ranked Tennessee.

"Louisiana is one of the least generous states as far as unemployment insurance is concerned, offering out-of-job workers an average of $208 a week in the 12 months through the first quarter of 2014, less than all but two other states," says the report. "And while Louisiana is hardly the nation's wealthiest state, the unemployment insurance benefits amounted to just 24.8 [percent] of workers' previous average wages, the second-lowest in the nation."

What makes matters worse is that only 20 percent of Louisiana's unemployed are getting benefits, tying us for seventh worst in the nation.

Fortunately for Louisiana, our unemployment rate, as of April, was 4.5 percent, the 10th lowest in the U.S.

Click here for the full report.