LIHU‘E — Ray Catania said there are thousands of workers statewide still waiting for unemployment benefits, Monday along Kaumuali‘i Highway near the Nawiliwili Road junction.
LIHU‘E — Ray Catania said there are thousands of workers statewide still waiting for unemployment benefits, Monday along Kaumuali‘i Highway near the Nawiliwili Road junction.
Coordinated through the Hawai‘i Workers Center, a handful of people took to the street with their message asking Gov. David Ige to reopen the state unemployment office. The Hawai‘i Workers Center’s efforts get support from Local 5 and Living Wage Hawai‘i.
“This is part of a statewide effort,” Catania said. “They have a similar rally on O‘ahu. The Hawai‘i Workers Center only recently established a Kaua‘i chapter where we try to help the most-needing unemployed people. Recently, the HWC provided relief checks to the needing unemployed people here as well as O‘ahu, Maui and the Big Island.”
Sign-waver Betty Dux is one of those getting relief help on Kaua‘i.
Fred Dente, unemployed since being laid off in April 2020 because of the COVID-19 pandemic, said he was getting his unemployment benefits until December.
“All of a sudden, they stopped in January,” Dente said. “I called, but there’s no response. It’s been seven months — is that a ‘reasonable’ amount of time? — and all I get told is they’re looking into the case. Finally, I contacted Rep. James Tokioka’s office, who didn’t just pass me off. They’re looking into the matter and, hopefully, I can get some help.”
On June 22, the state Department of Labor &Industrial Relations announced that the seasonally-adjusted unemployment rate for May was 8.1% compared to 8.5% in April. Statewide, 595,300 people were employed, and 52,150 unemployed in May. The national seasonally adjusted unemployment rate was 5.8% in May, down from 6.1% in April.
