Biden Calls for Expansion of Short-Term Compensation Programs

(Bloomberg) -- Former vice president and likely Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden released a new short-term compensation plan Thursday aimed at helping companies keep more employees on payrolls during the coronavirus pandemic.

More than 22 million people have filed for unemployment in the last month. Biden is recommending all 50 states increase their short-term compensation programs in which companies keep workers employed at reduced hours and the federal government assists in covering the difference in wages. The Biden campaign said 27 states have established such programs.

“We should be committed to keeping as many people as possible attached to their employment, so they can easily return to work when appropriate, and maintain their income and benefits,” Biden said in a statement.

Biden’s proposal calls for small businesses that use this program to not be excluded for other small business loans and to ensure companies that the companies’ taxes don’t go up in the future.

If elected, Biden says he would codify the program at the federal level, ensuring all financing for short-term compensation comes from the federal government not the state government and loosening the program’s rules to increase participation.

©2020 Bloomberg L.P.