Stimulus update – Some states offering hard-hit Americans as much as $2,000 to return to work

SOME states are offering people up to $2,000 to return to work after the Covid-19 pandemic led to mass unemployment in the US.

As more than 20 states are doing away with an extra $300 per week unemployment benefit, some are offering people cash if they can land a job.

Six states – Arizona, Colorado, Connecticut, Montana, New Hampshire and Oklahoma – are all offering bonuses to people who re-enter the work force.

Arizona, one of the states doing away with the extra $300 benefit, is offering a one-time payment of $2,000 to people who land a full-time job, and $1,000 to people who score part-time gigs.

Gov Doug Ducey announced earlier this month that the state had set aside $300million to get people back to work.

In Colorado, it's a race against the calendar. Those who get a job in May can get a $1,600 check, but in June, that amount shrinks to $1,200.

Connecticut is offering a $1,000 signing bonus for up to 10,000 people who are considered "long-term" employment seekers.

In Montana, the first 20,000 people to find a new full-time job after being unemployed can get a check for $1,200 after working for six weeks.

New Hampshire set up a program where residents who get a full-time job will get a $1,000 after working eight weeks. People who land part-time gigs can get $500.

In Oklahoma, the first 20,000 people to re-enter the job market can land a $1,200 bonus.

The state incentives to get people back to work come as Republican leaders are calling for an end to added federal unemployment benefits.

This week, Florida became the 23rd state to stop shelling out the extra $300 per week payment to its jobless residents, joining the likes of Texas, Missouri, Georgia, and South Carolina.

Floridians will no longer be eligible to receive the weekly Federal Pandemic Unemployment Compensation beginning June 27.

The additional benefits have prompted controversy in Florida and elsewhere in the country with critics claiming the extra cash prevents some from going back to work because they can now earn more by staying home.

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