|
Latest News Releases
|
|
|
Article Content
|
|
|
 |
| Oregon's Unemployment Situation |
|
| 01/20/2009 |
CONTACT: Craig Spivey
Public Affairs Specialist
WorkSource Oregon Employment Department
503-947-1303
craig.c.spivey@state.or.us
Unemployment Insurance Facts
The Oregon Employment Department is responding to the current economic situation by providing more benefits to those who have become unemployed through no fault of their own.
What benefits are available to Oregonians right now?
26 weeks regular claim ($113/week minimum, $482/week maximum)
33 weeks Emergency Unemployment Compensation
13 weeks Extended Benefits
7 weeks of High Extended Benefits*
79 weeks possible benefits
* Pending Department of Labor notice expected January 23, 2009
.
For the month of December, 2008, the Oregon Employment Department paid out $126,787,110 in unemployment insurance benefits, compared to $61,380,128 in December 2007. The number of weeks claimed for unemployment benefits was up 49% from December 2007 (212,128 weeks to 418,373 weeks).
|
Week ending Jan. 10
|
Same week in 2008
|
Oregonians receiving Regular Benefits
|
126.786
|
67,430
|
Oregonians receiving Emergency Unemployment Compensation (EUC)
|
29,272
|
0
|
Oregonians Exhausting Regular Benefits
|
1,970
|
712
|
Oregonians Exhausting EUC benefits
|
336
|
0
|
Benefits paid (EUC and Reg)
|
$45,022,926.00
|
$16,450,895.00
|
Claim filing activity
|
Last Week
(Jan. 11-17)
|
Same Week
2008
|
Last Month
(Dec. 2008)
|
Dec. 2007
(month)
|
Calls to Unemployment Insurance Centers
|
25,060
|
20,046
|
99,061
|
69,924
|
| Week ending Jan 17, 2009
| Week ending Jan. 10, 2009
|
Initial claims filed online
| 7,853 (69%)
| 9,773 (69%)
|
Initial claims filed by phone
| 3,472 (31%)
| 4,382 (31%)
|
To speed processing of unemployment insurance claims, the Oregon Employment Department has added staff to answer calls and has moved other staff to process claims during off hours. There are two ways to file for a claim: on the Internet, or by telephone.
For most Oregonians, the fastest way to file for unemployment insurance benefits is to go on the Internet. Unemployment Insurace claims may be filed at www.WorkingInOregon.org/ocs.
To file by telephone, call one the unemployment insurance centers servicing your area:
1 Portland Metro and NW Oregon: 503-451-2400, or toll free 1-877-877-1781
2 Eugene and SW Oregon: 541-686-7800 or toll free 1-877-728-7970
3 Central and Eastern Oregon: 541-388-6207 or toll free 1-800-663-7914
For the shortest wait times, contact the unemployment insurance centers on Tuesday, Wednesday, or Thursday mornings.
Getting Oregonians Back to Work
The state workforce system, WorkSource Oregon, has seen a huge jump in registrations for its job-matching site: iMatchSkills.org.
|
Jan 1 - 17, 2009
|
Jan 1 - 17, 2008
|
Increase
|
|
6,764
|
3,748
|
81%
|
Despite the downturn in the employment picture, there are thousands of jobs available on iMatchSkills®. As of Friday, January 16, 2009 there were 5,300 openings compared to 6,536 openings for the same period last month.
| Top Occupations by Number of Openings
|
Openings
|
1
| Interviewers, Except Eligibility and Loan
|
820
|
2
| Customer Service Representatives
|
496
|
3
| Farmworkers And Laborers For Crops
|
352
|
4
| Registered Nurses
|
125
|
5
| Home Health Aides
|
121
|
6
| Personal and Home Care Aides
|
102
|
7
| Nursing Aides, Orderlies, and Attendants
|
101
|
8
| Security Guards
|
100
|
9
| Forest Fire Fighters
|
79
|
10
| Employment, Recruitment, and Placement Specialists
|
77
|
|
|
Top 20 Occupational Groups by Openings
|
Openings
|
1
| Office and Administrative Support
|
1598
|
2
| Farming, Fishing, and Forestry
|
463
|
3
| Healthcare Practitioners and Technical
|
324
|
4
| Healthcare Support
|
290
|
5
| Sales
|
286
|
6
| Protective Service
|
274
|
7
| Food Preparation and Serving
|
200
|
8
| Personal Care and Service
|
184
|
9
| Business and Financial
|
184
|
10
| Building and Ground Maintenance
|
163
|
Job Seeker Services Available through WorkSource Oregon
1 Services and support to prepare job seekers for their next job
-
Skills assessment and improvement
-
Job search and other work-related workshops
-
Resume development
-
Resource Rooms with computers, phones, and fax
-
Labor market and career information
-
Job finding tools and information
2 Connecting to jobs
3 Services for Veterans
4 Services to Farm Workers
5 Information on other resources and assistance in the community
-
Housing, childcare, food banks, etc.
6 Information on connecting to educational opportunities and apprenticeships
Employer Services
1 Access to a large and diverse labor pool
2 Development and posting of lob Listings
3 Staff matching of job listings to the labor pool
4 Interview rooms and recruitment assistance
5 Rapid Response Activities such as layoff aversion assistance, layoff information and transition for employees, and other assistance to human resource staff
WorkSource Oregon is in the process of implementing a new skill assessment that will help job seekers determine their best fit for current openings, and what training they might need to make them more employable. Job seekers take a skill assessment and are then served by one of our partners to obtain needed training.
How to access these services:
Web: www.WorkSourceOregon.org, www.iMatchSkills.org, www.Employment.Oregon.gov
In person: Network of offices statewide, call 877-517-5627 for location information
-30-
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|