WASHINGTON — Senator Mike Braun is steadfast in his support of Governor Eric Holcomb’s decision to end Indiana’s participation in expanded federal unemployment benefits.
Talking to Newsmax on Monday, Braun said that now the benefits are creating unnecessary competition between businesses and the federal government as much more of the economy continues to reopen and demand for workers goes up.
“I spent last week traveling our state,” Braun said. “It was a uniform chorus of small, medium, large businesses: ‘federal government, you’re keeping us from getting our own employees back to work’.”
This week the head of the AFL-CIO union Brett Voorhies said Holcomb is trying to “coerce” people to take low-wage jobs by ending extra benefits. Voorhies called the governor’s decision “cruel.”
However, Braun still believes differently and that Hoosier businesses are hurting from the extra benefits.
“When you’ve got a 40-hour workweek at $15 an hour, 600-bucks,” he added. “Even in a low cost of living state, like Indiana, you’re getting paid more to be on te sidelines. So I was loving it when governors across the country were saying enough is enough.”
Braun is urging Democratic governors in other states to follow Holcomb’s suit.
Holcomb said last week that Indiana’s extra federal unemployment benefits will be ending on Jun 19th. He has already planned to cut off extra benefits from the state as well.
