RICHMOND, Va., May 18 (UPI) — Some people recently laid-off from religious institutions in Virginia said they were shocked to find the state does not offer them unemployment benefits.
Carol Bronson, who was laid off from her secretarial job at Temple Emanuel synagogue in Virginia Beach, said she was told her unemployment claim was denied because the tax exemptions for religious organizations under Virginia law include an exemption from paying unemployment taxes, The (Norfolk) Virginian-Pilot reported Monday.
“I had no idea that there would not be any benefits for me after leaving my job,” she said.
Rabbi Howard Mandell of Temple Emanuel said the synagogue was unaware of the Virginia tax law at the time of the layoff.
Jane Dembert, who worked for 17 years at the Christ and St. Luke’s Episcopal Church in Norfolk, most recently as director of communications, said she was also surprised to have her unemployment claim denied after she was laid-off earlier this year.
Coleman Walsh, chief administrative law judge with the state employment commission, said most people he has spoken to were unaware that faith-based groups are exempt from unemployment taxes.
The Catholic Diocese of Richmond has a voluntary self-insurance arrangement with the state that allows laid-off workers to file for unemployment. If the claim is accepted, the state bills the diocese for the amount of the benefits collected by the recipient.
#16 – Alfredone – Good…keep Government out of religion.
And keep religion out of politics. Remove all tax exemptions and treat religion for what it is… organized crime.
There is a God!
Shame on the churches for not handling this! This isn’t the first time that church staff got laid off. I find it hard to believe that no one in the organization, not even their accountants, knew that there was no safety net for the unemployed, and thus made no provisions to help them. Organized crime, indeed!
Yeah, What Jägermeister said in #19. And hang any legislator or judicial member who mentions religious beliefs as a reason for the law or judgement being made. Ah, hell. Just hang ‘em all, anyway. We got lot’s of rope.
#13, dave,
Uummm, not quite. EI is its own deduction and it DOES NOT go to the Provincial Government.
I am baffled as to why a religious organization does not have to pay taxes and insurance for their employees. I suppose if an employee was injured on the job, they would find out the hard way their employer doesn’t carry Workman’s Compensation Insurance either.
I think this would be religious discrimination.
#23, Mr. Fusion
Ya, your probably right, I don’t know where it actually goes, but I do know that I pay into it and I could dip into it if I needed it.
I really do not know why charities and churches get special tax status.
However, I do know that as a church we do a lot of social work that the government does not do. We run the local food bank, a teen drop-in center, a battered woman’s shelter along with prison and hospital ministries.
I guess the Church gets some tax breaks for doing social work and helping the poorest among us?
Now I can only speak to my situation in Canada (Ontario), but our “church” doesn’t really get tax breaks, other than 50% less G.S.T. and maybe land tax? (maybe).
However, as a minister, I get a special tax exemption called a housing allowance. It allows me to claim up to $10,000 of income as tax free. (I think that is the term).
That’s cool with me, but then again I have a Master’s degree and I make an annual income of only $33,000 a year. So the housing allowance helps, lol.
There would be a few other Tax allowances if I were ordained.
I rally have no idea why the American Church would not have to, or want to, pay taxes for their employees. You guys are really big on the whole separation of church and state down there, is that maybe why? (honest question)
#12 Jägermeister wrote, “Don’t worry religious workers! Your reward comes in the afterlife!”
And the good news is, their reward will also be untaxed. Those lucky believers! Heaven has been declared an eternal tax haven, although unpaid military service in God’s army may be required.
As liberals believe in higher taxes…lets make them pay for everyone’s unemployment benefits…leave us conservatives alone however…we believe they should go out and get another job…not sit at home and get a check…radical idea, I know…but its ours.
I hate to point out the obvious, but if she was laid off from a Synagog, taking up a collection on Sunday wouldn’t yield a lot.
# 12 johnrudy,
No offense to me. Those are good suggestions. I especially like c.
I think we all may be missing the really good news in this. While I’m sorry for those who were laid off without unemployment insurance, I can’t help but be happy about this important issue.
For religious institutions to be laying people off, religion must finally be in decline!!
Yay!!!
Virginia is the only state with that law?
I thought ALL states provide tax exemption for this class of pyramid scheme.
Whatever…………..if we can give social security to illegal aliens and import the trash of the World to mess up our country and send all the money overseas, including foreign to China – still! Then why not give our own people unemployment..irrespective of religion. I bet if they had been part of a Muslim sect they would have gotten the unemployment, probably several checks under several different names, because every Mullah arrested has had five or six different social security numbers when arrested………
Whatever………….
Traaxx
When a church extends it’s self to be more than a preacher and congregation with a meeting place, it is no longer a church but a business and should pay the same taxes as other businesses.
If the building is so large it requires other than the minster to clean and maintain, it’s not a church, but a scam.
#15 Benjamin describes things like they are in Canada. The unemployment thing is NOT a tax, it is a mandatory insurance scheme. Fusion is also correct; it is a federal not a provincial program(me) in Canada.
I can understand churches being exempt from taxes such as income taxes, but I do not understand them being exempt from the unemployment scheme, which should relate to all employees equally, regardless of cree…
I’ve never worked in a state that required workers to “pay in” to any unemployment insurance program. The employer did that, (though, of course any cost would affect the amount available to pay wages- sort of the worker paying through the back door?).
Anyway, nothing is stopping nonprofits from paying it voluntarily or setting up some other system to help x-workers. Seems like churches,especially, should take the lead here. It’s a shame some don’t. It ought to be a crime when they don’t tell applicants up front.