MADISON, WI (AP)-- Unemployed people in Wisconsin would have to double their searches for work from two to four a week or lose their benefits under a proposal approved by the Legislature's budget committee.
The measure approved Monday by the Joint Finance Committee is one of the toughest job search requirements in the country. The full Legislature would have to agree for the change to take effect.
While four searches would be the minimum, the Department of Workforce Development is given the power to require even more searches in the future.
Democrats on the Republican-controlled committee objected to the change, saying it was designed to kick people off of unemployment insurance.
Republicans say the true goal is to motivate people to look for a job, not kick them off.
