New legislation focused on unemployment insurance costs passes in Massachusetts
Massachusetts businesses are expected to save money on their unemployment insurance coverage thanks to new legislation that has been signed into law by Governor Deval Patrick. The legislation is a compromise between lawmakers that want to raise the state’s minimum wage and those that want to take action on unemployment throughout Massachusetts. The new law is expected to be well received among the state’s businesses, many of whom have been expressing concerns regarding the costs of unemployment coverage.
Legislation aims to reduce the cost of insurance coverage for businesses, with many companies likely to see a 25% reduction in insurance rates
Massachusetts is currently home to the fourth highest unemployment insurance premiums, with businesses spending an average of $714 per employee on coverage. The legislation is designed to freeze rates at their 2013 levels, eventually reducing these rates through 2017. State officials expect that three out of four businesses will see their unemployment insurance costs drop by 25% or more throughout the coming years. Larger companies are likely to see more significant decreases in their insurance costs due to the fact that they have more employees.
New law could create promising economic opportunities for consumers and businesses
The Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce expects that the new law will help boost the state’s competitiveness and help create new jobs. The law may also lead to the emergence of new economic opportunities that will benefit Massachusetts residents and businesses alike. Exactly what these new economic opportunities will be is difficult to say for sure, but businesses have been fighting for new unemployment insurance legislation for years.
Massachusetts lawmakers succeed in raising the state’s minimum wage by a modest amount
In order to win a victory on the unemployment front, businesses have had to relax their traditionally aggressive fight against plans to raise minimum wage. Lawmakers have been pushing for a higher minimum wage for some time, but their efforts have largely been blocked by the state’s businesses. Per the new legislation, however, Massachusetts’ minimum wage will increase from $8 to $11 per hour by 2017.
