Infographic: 30 Million Workers On Jobless Benefit Programs

Roughly 30 million Americans fear for their livelihood as Congress has yet to find a compromise on extending the weekly supplement to regular unemployment benefits due to expire this weekend. As part of the CARES Act, the Federal Pandemic Unemployment Compensation program (FPUC), which provides an additional $600 per week to individuals who are collecting regular jobless benefits, has proven highly effective in keeping affected households afloat during the past few months, and it is widely feared that millions of workers will no longer be able to pay their bills or serve their debt once that bonus is taken away.

According to data published by the U.S. Department of Labor on Thursday, more than 30 million Americans currently receive unemployment benefits, 17 million through regular state programs and another 13 million through the federal Pandemic Unemployment Assistance program, which is available to individuals who are self-employed or who otherwise would not qualify for regular unemployment compensation. As the majority of those 30+ million are said to qualify for the weekly $600 bonus, economists are warning that consumer spending could fall off a cliff in case the program expires without an adequate follow-up solution in place.