PROVIDENCE, R.I. -- As many as 8,000 Rhode Islanders collecting extended unemployment benefits stand to lose 12.2 percent of their weekly benefits beginning the week of April 28 because of federal sequestration, the Rhode Island Department of Labor and Training announced Tuesday.
That amounts to an average reduction of $46 per week for each claimant receiving federal benefits -- or an estimated loss of $1.5 million in total federal benefits paid out in a month, according to the DLT. On average, a current weekly unemployment benefit check totals $377.
The automatic federal budget cuts are the result of the failure by Congress to reach consensus on deficit reduction.
These cuts do not affect Rhode Islanders receiving regular, state unemployment benefits, which cover the first 26 weeks of unemployment claims.