When I was writing about the Unemployment Extension Act, I neglected to mention a wonderful website called the Layoff List. The Layoff List is a place where the unemployed (and everyone else) can go to find out about unemployment news, jobless claims and the “Real UE [UI] Numbers”. The list was started by a guy named Mike due to his own situation of being a 99er:
The reason I started this blog was to highlight the employment picture and to list smaller layoff announcements that don’t get the attention of main stream media. There is a great deal of scattered job loss information, but I try to gather that information and present it in a manner that is concise and, hopefully, informative.
Another person promoting the cause of the unemployed is Palidinette (aka LaDona King) who is more aggressive in her approach:
From the Washington Independent: (Thanks Cricket!)
…She routinely publishes phone numbers, fax numbers and email addresses of lawmakers to target, rallying her thousands of online supporters to the cause. King personally calls 25 or 30 legislators’ offices a day. Sometimes, when she posts lawmakers’ numbers or picks out a particularly egregious example of a legislator blocking a vote or putting down the unemployed, her followers flood a Senate or House office with phone calls.
And finally, Ur Union of Unemployed or U-Cubed, which is,
…a community service project of the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAM). With over 31 million Americans idled to some degree by this Grave Recession – and no relief in sight — the IAM and its partners saw a need to unify the unemployed in a unique and useful way.
UCubed does exactly that. It brings people together – the unemployed and underemployed alike – to build a community of Jobs Activists who will create local networks, support one another and help get America back to work.
I voraciously applaud all the efforts that the above are making on the behalf of the unemployed.
We truly appreciate it.