FINRA, NASWA Deliver Job Dislocation Resource to Unemployed Workers in All 50 States

WASHINGTON — The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA), in partnership with the National Association of State Workforce Agencies (NASWA), announced today a nationwide initiative to deliver an educational resource to help workers make better financial decisions during periods of unemployment. The resource, a brochure titled Job Dislocation, Making Smart Financial Choices after a Job Loss, offers specific tips on keeping finances on track while unemployed, asking the right questions about company benefit plans, checking out financial advisers and avoiding job scams.

FINRA will deliver up to 300,000 copies of this brochure to state unemployment agencies free of charge. In addition to helping workers avoid pitfalls when handling their retirement funds and other severance pay during periods of unemployment, Job Dislocation also provides unemployed workers with information on claiming unemployment insurance and the procedures they should follow to notify state unemployment agencies once they start a new job.

"This is a great resource for workers who have lost their jobs and want to claim unemployment insurance," said Richard A. Hobbie, NASWA's Executive Director. "By connecting with state unemployment insurance agencies, workers also will be connecting with state and local workforce agencies that can help them with their job search and career decisions. And, as they search for work, they will be guided to jobs by the JobCentral National Labor Exchange, operated by DirectEmployers Association in alliance with the National Association of State Workforce Agencies and its member states."

"Unemployment is affecting millions of workers across the country," said John Gannon, FINRA Senior Vice President for Investor Education. "This information may be able to help ease the financial impact of job loss on unemployed workers and their families. FINRA is proud to work with NASWA to deliver this important information to workers throughout the United States."

FINRA is the largest independent regulator for all securities firms doing business in the United States. FINRA is dedicated to investor protection and market integrity through effective and efficient regulation and complementary compliance and technology-based services. FINRA touches virtually every aspect of the securities business - from registering and educating all industry participants to examining securities firms, writing and enforcing rules and the federal securities laws, informing and educating the investing public, providing trade reporting and other industry utilities, and administering the largest dispute resolution forum for investors and registered firms. For more information, please visit www.finra.org.

NASWA, the National Association of State Workforce Agencies, is an organization of state administrators of unemployment insurance laws, employment services, training programs, employment statistics and labor market information and other programs and services provided through the publicly-funded state workforce system. For more information, please visit, www.workforceatm.org.