Three million jobless workers will lose unemployment insurance in early 2013 if Congress fails to renew federal benefits. In the midst of this still slow recovery, long-term unemployment continues to impose severe hardship on U.S. families struggling to find work. If Congress chooses not to reauthorize the Emergency Unemployment Compensation program, two million workers now collecting federal unemployment benefits will be cut off after payment for the week ending December 29th, and nearly one million more workers will run out of state unemployment benefits without access to EUC by the end of the first quarter of 2013. These workers depend on unemployment insurance (UI) to keep their families in their homes, fed, and warm in the winter months. The consequences of inaction will be devastating.

READ MORE IN THE NATIONAL EMPLOYMENT LAW PROJECT’S LATEST REPORT.

On February 10th, 2012, the North Carolina Justice Center partnered with unemployed workers and service providers from across the state to urge lawmakers to extend federal unemployment benefits. Watch video from the press conference here: