CCSO works with ICE to catch suspects in Southwest Florida State lawmakers are working on a new immigration bill. Here in Southwest Florida, one county has been following strict guidelines on illegal immigration for quite some time.
Burn ban in effect for Collier County The Board of County Commissioners has authorized a burn ban in Collier County.
FGCU FGCU’s Zavian McLean shares student athlete experience with podcast FGCU men’s basketball guard Zavian McLean shares what its like to be a Division I student athlete in his podcast “Truey Talks.”
Locals react to egg price increase Egg prices continue to soar. In fact, prices have gone up about 37% from where they were just one year ago, and the pricing and supply issues have started to impact Southwest Florida.
FORT MYERS BEACH Trump’s executive order on straws stirs debate in Fort Myers Beach President Donald Trump recently signed an executive order to bring back plastic straws, reversing a previous plan to reduce plastic reliance in the federal government.
Charlotte County official’s usage of racial slur prompts calls for resignation Charlotte County Commissioner Stephen Deutsch is under scrutiny after a complaint surfaced last week alleging he used the N-word during a work meeting.
CAPE CORAL Cape Coral woman finds hope with new ALS drug A breakthrough discovery of a drug offers new hope for patients with a genetic form of the disease.
Elevate Florida program to help homeowners strengthen properties against storms The Florida Dept. of Emergency Management announced the launch of its new “Elevate Florida” residential mitigation program.
Planning and Zoning Board approves proposed West County area development Homebuilder Maronda Homes received approval Feb. 10 from the Charlotte County Planning and Zoning Board to amend a previously approved development on 1,174 acres in the area of South Gulf Cove.
LEHIGH ACRES 3 charged for major theft organization targeting luxury vehicles Three men, one from Lehigh Acres, has been charged for their role in a major theft organization targeting luxury vehicles.
port charlotte Man arrested for DUI after slamming into Port Charlotte home’s garage The North Port Police Department has arrested a man accused of DUI and crashing into a Port Charlotte home’s garage.
CAPE CORAL New information on nurse accused of starving premature baby New information has been released about what happened behind closed doors when a nurse allegedly starved a premature baby.
BONITA SPRINGS World’s largest bounce castle to spring into Bonita Springs The Big Bounce America, the world’s largest inflatable bounce castle is set to appear in Bonita Springs.
palmdale Gatorama owner bitten during alligator feeding show Gatorama owner Allen Register was sent to hospital after being bitten by an alligator during a feeding show.
CAPE CORAL Man accused of Cape Coral DUI accident with serious injuries A man has been arrested after allegedly causing an accident with injuries while driving under the influence in Cape Coral.
CCSO works with ICE to catch suspects in Southwest Florida State lawmakers are working on a new immigration bill. Here in Southwest Florida, one county has been following strict guidelines on illegal immigration for quite some time.
Burn ban in effect for Collier County The Board of County Commissioners has authorized a burn ban in Collier County.
FGCU FGCU’s Zavian McLean shares student athlete experience with podcast FGCU men’s basketball guard Zavian McLean shares what its like to be a Division I student athlete in his podcast “Truey Talks.”
Locals react to egg price increase Egg prices continue to soar. In fact, prices have gone up about 37% from where they were just one year ago, and the pricing and supply issues have started to impact Southwest Florida.
FORT MYERS BEACH Trump’s executive order on straws stirs debate in Fort Myers Beach President Donald Trump recently signed an executive order to bring back plastic straws, reversing a previous plan to reduce plastic reliance in the federal government.
Charlotte County official’s usage of racial slur prompts calls for resignation Charlotte County Commissioner Stephen Deutsch is under scrutiny after a complaint surfaced last week alleging he used the N-word during a work meeting.
CAPE CORAL Cape Coral woman finds hope with new ALS drug A breakthrough discovery of a drug offers new hope for patients with a genetic form of the disease.
Elevate Florida program to help homeowners strengthen properties against storms The Florida Dept. of Emergency Management announced the launch of its new “Elevate Florida” residential mitigation program.
Planning and Zoning Board approves proposed West County area development Homebuilder Maronda Homes received approval Feb. 10 from the Charlotte County Planning and Zoning Board to amend a previously approved development on 1,174 acres in the area of South Gulf Cove.
LEHIGH ACRES 3 charged for major theft organization targeting luxury vehicles Three men, one from Lehigh Acres, has been charged for their role in a major theft organization targeting luxury vehicles.
port charlotte Man arrested for DUI after slamming into Port Charlotte home’s garage The North Port Police Department has arrested a man accused of DUI and crashing into a Port Charlotte home’s garage.
CAPE CORAL New information on nurse accused of starving premature baby New information has been released about what happened behind closed doors when a nurse allegedly starved a premature baby.
BONITA SPRINGS World’s largest bounce castle to spring into Bonita Springs The Big Bounce America, the world’s largest inflatable bounce castle is set to appear in Bonita Springs.
palmdale Gatorama owner bitten during alligator feeding show Gatorama owner Allen Register was sent to hospital after being bitten by an alligator during a feeding show.
CAPE CORAL Man accused of Cape Coral DUI accident with serious injuries A man has been arrested after allegedly causing an accident with injuries while driving under the influence in Cape Coral.
Credit: WINK News. More people are getting back to work. That’s according to new numbers from the state that show October’s unemployment rate slid down to 6.5%, and Southwest Florida is following the same trend. We looked into what’s behind the numbers in the recent report. We often hear about the unemployment rate, but we don’t hear as much about discouraged workers and people who are under employed or not working enough hours, and that’s what experts say we can’t ignore. State numbers do show some people are getting back to work. We’ve gained back more than half the jobs we lost early in the pandemic. At the same time, the labor force is shrinking. Even though unemployment claims are also falling, researchers say they can’t count how many people never got through the system and just gave up. In October, about one 1 of every 3 unemployed individuals nationwide were “long-term” unemployed, making it even harder to get a job. “Just because the unemployment rate is dropping, it doesn’t mean that people should stop paying attention to the unemployment system in Florida,” said Michele Evermore, researcher and senior policy adviser with the National Employment Law Project. “I just got an email from a family in Florida, where only one person was able to get a benefit. It was something like $125 a week, and they are now living in a camper, and they have to keep moving the camper every time they get caught living in some friend’s backyard … This is the human cost of not having a decent unemployment insurance system.” If we include those who are discouraged or working part-time but want to be full-time, the unemployment rate doubles. Evermore says more state help is needed to get them back on track. Unfortunately for many people still collecting benefits, come Dec. 31, key programs from the CARES Act that have allowed millions of people to makes ends meet for months will expire. “We know that nationally 12 million people will fall off the rolls at the end of the year,” Evermore said. “But we also know from the Congressional Budget Office that, prior to the end of the year, five million people lose benefits because they’ve exhausted everything. And that’s particularly a problem in Florida that only has 12 weeks of regular benefits.” There is some good news: Starting Jan. 1, 2021, any new claims in Florida will be eligible for up to 19 weeks of payments instead of 12 weeks. That’s due to the fact that Florida’s unemployment rate skyrocketed in 2020. MORE: Florida’s October Employment Figures Released For ongoing updates and information on unemployment, follow WINK News Investigative Reporter Sara Girard on Twitter and Facebook. She also updates the WINK News FAQ: Unemployment Resources page as information is received.