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NYS Seal For Immediate Release:
March 1, 2002
 
Silver, Senator Clinton, Labor Leaders, Other Elected Officials Call on House to Extend Unemployment Insurance

Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver, U.S. Senator Hillary Clinton, labor leaders and other elected officials today called upon the U.S. House of Representatives to approve legislation to extend and fund Unemployment Insurance and Disaster Unemployment Insurance benefits in New York.

"Our city has borne the brunt of the suffering and the brunt of the destruction in America's 'War on Terrorism,'" Silver said. "Thanks to the efforts of Senator Clinton, Senator Schumer and our bipartisan Congressional delegation, we have received some help from Capitol Hill. But we have not received anywhere near the kind of support that we need to address the broad and complex challenges that we face right now.

"When you consider how much working New Yorkers contribute to this nation's economic strength and quality of life, this lackluster federal response is all the more frustrating," Silver added.

An estimated 7,700 New Yorkers reach the end of their unemployment benefits each week. The state's Unemployment Trust Fund is nearly exhausted.

Silver and Clinton were joined at today's event by New York State AFL-CIO President Denis Hughes, SEIU Local 32BJ President Mike Fishman and Assemblyman Brian McLaughlin (D-Queens), president of the New York City Central Labor Council.

"It is time for House Speaker Dennis Hastert to stand up in the spirit of American patriotism and work to pass and fund this legislation," Silver said. "In this time of heightened patriotism and unity, New York's working families - and all of America's working families - need more than rhetoric, they need action and they need it now."


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New York State Assembly
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