An editorial from the St. Petersburg Times

With so much attention being paid to whether American automakers should get a bailout, Congress should not lose sight of essential legislation to extend unemployment benefits. Senate leaders have bundled together an auto industry rescue with the extension of unemployment benefits. But if it turns out that Democrats can’t muster the votes needed for passage of a combined measure, the jobless benefits should be approved separately.
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By Steven Greenhouse
The New York Times

Economists rarely agree on anything, but a great many do agree on one unfortunate matter these days: the current economic downturn is likely to develop into the worst recession since the downturn of 1981-82.
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An editorial in the New York Times

The job numbers for October, released by the government on Friday, leave no doubt that the nation is in a recession that will be deep and painful. As President-elect Barack Obama said on Friday, Congress cannot wait for a new administration to take action.

Lawmakers, no matter how lame-duck they may be, have a duty to pass an extension of unemployment benefits and other measures that directly address surging joblessness and shrinking incomes. Mr. Obama was right to endorse this approach, but as he noted, there is already a sitting president. If President Bush and his team care at all about their legacy at this point, they should support a real stimulus plan, or at the very least get out of the way and not block or distort it.
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The Government of Ontario is committed to a Poverty Reduction Strategy. The 25 in 5 Campaign will work towards reducing poverty levels in Ontario by 25 percent in 5 years and 50 percent by 2018.

On October 27th, the 25 in 5 Network for Poverty Reduction hosted a Toronto Network General Assembly that brought together friends and allies, including Half in Ten Executive Director Lisa Donner, as part of the countdown to the announcement of Ontario’s Poverty Reduction plan in December 2008.
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By Jon Hurdle
Reuters

Pennsylvania’s U.S. senators said on Friday a program that has helped many homeowners in the Philadelphia area to avoid foreclosure could be a model for rescuing thousands of strapped borrowers nationwide.

Sens. Arlen Specter and Robert Casey held a U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee hearing in Philadelphia to hear how the city was able to prevent foreclosure of about 80 percent of homes referred to the program in its first three months.
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An editorial from the Winston-Salem Journal

The good news is that the state’s rising unemployment rate triggered a safety net that may catch about 40,000 jobless North Carolinians who’ve used up all their unemployment benefits in the past year. But the bad news is that this program is just a short-term solution to a growing problem. The new governor will have to work with state and local leaders to improve the economy and create more jobs.
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By Paul Jackson
HousingWire.com

New Jersey state officials last week said they would begin to roll out a program requiring mandatory mediation on certain foreclosure proceedings, the latest effort by local government officials to stanch a growing tide of foreclosures. New Jersey Chief Justice Stuart Rabner said in a press statement that the program would provide mediators to help homeowners and lenders negotiate with one another and try to work out agreements to avoid foreclosures.
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An editorial from the Bangor Daily News

Now that they’ve passed a massive bailout plan for the financial sector, lawmakers are again turning their attention to average Americans and talking about a second stimulus package. Such a package should only be considered, with Congress returning to Washington for a lame duck session to work on it, if lawmakers can stick to stimulus that works.
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By Sarah A. Reid
The Fayetteville Observer

Before January, Robert Wallace always had great luck with temporary agencies.

They provided the 43-year-old with steady work in good-paying factories and warehouses.

But in January, a temp-to-hire job did not materialize, and his work in a factory that makes body washes ended.

Wallace was suddenly without a job and without any prospects.
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By Sean Whaley
Las Vegas Review-Journal

CARSON CITY — Nevada’s unemployment jumped again in September, hitting 7.3 percent for the highest jobless rate in nearly 23 years, a state agency reported Monday.

The state’s seasonally adjusted rate was up two-tenths of a percentage point from August and up 2.3 percentage points from September 2007.

The last time the unemployment rate was this high was in November 1985, according to the report from the Nevada Department of Employment, Training and Rehabilitation.
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