I’ve got a simple (easy to understand) Stimulus Package…it’s called GEAP. For those currently on unemployment, they should be allowed to get any work they possibly can while keeping their full range of benefits for the period time of entitlement. For those corporations, who are going to continue to lay off employees, before they lay off 1000’s of people, they apply to a Government Employee Assistance Program, which supplements the salaries of those who would be laid off. In other words, if a potential laid off employee normally receives $600.00 per week, the employee would be paid the going rate of unemployment (subsidized by GEAP) and the employer pays the difference in salary and/or weekly home take home pay – based upon the employee’s last paycheck. Coporations can cut employee salary expense by upwards to 50% or more.
Businesses are not interested in tax credits so, the other idea would be to credit back the employee taxes paid by the employer/employee for a period of six months from the date of proposed unemployment. We can call this program a payroll tax- free re-employment program.
No, this idea is not perfect, however, if the lay offs continue, Americans will be displaced from jobs in the short-term. Those employers contemplating laying off Americans, will eventually re-employee workers, as the economy comes out of recession. Keep Americans working (whether part or full time) based upon the GEAP idea and we stave off increasing numbers of unemployed Americans.
If the layoffs are to continue, the best way to keep the economy afloat may be to subsidized salaries through GEAP and unemployment benefits.
Corporations are laying off employees to tighten their belts – nothing more. In some cases, these corporations are laying off employees to keep their books looking lean and mean (especially if they’re a publicly held corporation). It’s not as though all of those being laid off are being shown the door, as they’ve been replaced technology or their positions are no longer required. They are being laid off out of fear. When we watch these massive lay offs being announced on the news, the reason is NOT that the employees are NO longer needed, it’s always based upon corporations trying to save money.
Subsidize the employees/employer through unemployment benefits (which they’re going to get anyway), keep them at their job posts and get the employers to agree to pay the difference between the unemployment benefit received by the laid off worker and the salary and/or weekly take home pay that employee received.
OK, that’s my proposed GEAP Assistance Program, let’s hear some other ideas or, better yet, help me refine GEAP.
