In Some Reopening States, Unemployment Can Pay More Than Lost Jobs

In Some Reopening States, Unemployment Can Pay More Than Lost Jobs
Pigeons fly over closed stores on the Boardwalk in Venice, Calif. on April 26, 2020. Apu Gomes/AFP/Getty Images
|Updated:

Some laid-off Americans receive bigger checks from unemployment than they did from working, and employers worry they won’t rush to return to their jobs.

While unemployment benefits serve as a financial lifeline for those who lose their jobs, the program typically replaces only about 40 percent of workers’ wages, on average.