Unemployed workers in Michigan will now receive a payment increase in their benefits.

This increase comes days after the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics named Michigan as the state with the highest increase in unemployment rates in the last year. Its the first increase in over 20 years and some workers say the hike is long overdue.

"So this year, benefits go from a maximum of $362 a week to a maximum of $446, said Nick Assendelft, a spokesperson for the Michigan Unemployment Insurance Agency.

Hear more about the changes from Assendelft in the video below: Michigan Unemployment Insurance Agency spokesperson speaks on changes

Detroiter Alex Robinson said he has been laid off since December as a contractor for one of the automakers. While he said the increase is appreciated, he thinks it should be more.

Eighty-two dollars for over 20-plus years what was the increase per year, Robinson said.

Robinson said he currently receives the maximum benefit of $362 a week in unemployment benefits, but that is not what he brings home.

They also take child support out of mine, he said. So, mine is $207.

Robinson said he brings home a little over $400 every two weeks from unemployment.

Four hundred and 14 dollars two times a month doesnt even pay my rent, Robinson said.

But he is looking forward to the bump.

Currently, the unemployment rate in Michigan is at 5.4%.

Wayne State University economics professor Kevin Cotter said one reason we are seeing an increase in the unemployment rate is because of the slowdown in hiring.

Especially in the last few months with the uncertainty about the future trade policy, Cotter said. We're (Michiganders) still very dependent on the automobile industry and Michigan is especially vulnerable to the effects of tariffs."

Cotter said the inconsistency in the imposing of tariffs has been making companies especially automakers think twice before hiring.

 

But, there has been employment growth in other industries.

Our biggest growth industry has been health care, Cotter said. We have an increasing number of elderly people needing more care. So thats been a continued growth industry.

The Michigan Unemployment Insurance Agency said unemployed workers will also qualify for up to 26 weeks of unemployment with the new changes instead of the current 14 to 20 weeks.

But for Robinson, while he says the increase in benefits across the board will be helpful, hes hoping his days of being out of work come to an end very soon.

Man, Im begging. I swear Im begging to go back to work, Robinson said.

The tax filing deadline is a little under a month away. But before you file if you havent already the IRS urges you to be aware of common tax scams.

Jarael Major, who runs Major CPA Tax & Accounting Services, dropped some tips and broke down warning signs on how to avoid being a target.

Apply for an identity protection pin, said Major, a certified public accountant.

Hear more from Jarael Major in the video player below: Extended interview: CPA Jarael Major gives tips to avoid tax scams

Major is a certified public accountant. He says identity theft is one area of fraudulent tax activity, and that pin numbers can help protect you or your dependents.

You will get a different pin every filing season with a code, the CPA said. So even if someone did try to use your social security number or your dependent's social security number, it will not go through without that two-factor authorization code.

Major has been a CPA for seven years. Before that, he was a professional tax preparer for over a decade with a registered preparer tax identification number, which is the number the IRS issues a tax preparer to sign the taxee's tax return after preparing it.

According to the IRS, those who do not have this number are considered a ghost preparer and people should be wary of them.

A ghost tax preparer is someone who does not sign your return as your paid preparer, Major said. They just use Turbo Tax or use different third-party softwares, but theyre not signing as a preparer with that PTIN number. So essentially, it looks as if the taxpayer themselves signed the return on their own and submitted it.

The IRS says that they require all tax preparers to sign tax returns and not doing so may signal fraud. Major said the IRS will never call or email and will communicate through U.S. mail.

One way Major says to avoid getting scammed by a ghost preparer is having a consistent tax preparer.

You dont want to just bounce around from tax preparer to tax preparer, Major said. Obviously, the more people who have access to your information significantly increases the chances that you would be a victim."

Tony Dorsey says he never has been a victim of tax scam and never wants to. For that reason, Dorsey uses the same preparer every year.

You cant just go to just anybody, Dorsey said. Because it is frauds everywhere."

Major said he encourages all tax payers to do their due diligence before selecting someone to prepare their taxes.

Ask questions about their certifications or if they have a PTIN number, he said.

St. Patricks Day is quickly approaching.

On Monday, the Irish holiday will be celebrated all over the world. But in Detroits Corktown specifically, the celebration starts early.

Peggy Sullivan Gray is a lifelong Michigander and St. Patricks Day is one holiday she looks forward too.

I was blessed by COVID to be grand marshall for three years cause they kept cancelling the parade, she said.

This year though, Gray wont be serving as the grand marshall, but she will be marching in the parade with her organization Ladies of Ancient Order of Hibernians, or LAOH.

There are like 37 organizations, she said. And we all march in with our group and wear our sashes and support our organization and let people know who we are.

The St. Patricks Parade is held every year the Sunday before the Irish holiday and draws between 80,000 to 100,000 people.

Mike Kelley, who organizes the event every year, says one thing he is looking forward to is the first-timers marching in the parade.

Related video: Crews ready for annual St. Patrick's Day Parade in Detroit Crews ready for annual St. Patrick's Day Parade in Detroit

We are honored to have the iron workers with us, Kelley said. We also have the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers and IBE Local 58 in Detroit.

Additionally, Kelley said the old-timer participants are also a lot of fun.

The Ghostbusters come into the Family Fun Zone and see the kids and take pictures, he said.

Businesses in Corktown also say they're preparing for the crowd on Sunday.

Were going to do some Reubens, said Ron Moore, owner of Corktown Taphouse. Were also going to have Guinness kraut on it with swiss cheese.

Over at McShanes Irish Pub, they are preparing their St. Patricks Day Margarita.

For those worried about the large crowd and safety, Detroit police will have a presence in the area.

Detroit police tactical operations does an incredible job for us, Kelley said. Theyre out here with us in the morning. We put bike barricades up down the street on Michigan (Avenue).

The parade kicks off at 1p.m. on Sunday, but early arrival is suggested because Michigan Avenue will be closed at 9:30 a.m. for the Corktown Races.

For Kyneisha Johnigan, giving birth is not new, but doing it at a homeless shelter is.

I was contracting and I was walking around the building, Johnigan said. I was like, 'Im going to drive myself to the hospital.' And then Im like, 'wait,' and I felt down in my below area and I felt his head."

On Friday, Johnigan gave birth to her fifth child, Jasir Smith, inside her room at Genesis House II. Genesis House II is a homeless shelter on the city's west side for women and children.

Extended interview: Johnigan talks about delivering in the shelter Kyneisha Johnigan shares experience of giving birth at shelter

The mom of five says the staff tried to get her to the hospital, but because Jasir was already coming down, they helped her deliver instead.

She was like, 'get to pushing. Come on, we got it. We gone do this,'" Johnigan said about the staff member who assisted her delivery. She was like, 'Im a mama, you a mama. We gonna get through this.'"

Dr. Chad Audi, the CEO of the Detroit Rescue Mission Ministries and the umbrella that Genesis House II falls under, says Jasirs birth is a first of its kind for the shelter.

Weve had people pregnant, getting ready to have a baby, Audi said. We had them leave out of here and deliver in the hospital. But delivering on the floor, or on the bed of where theyre staying, this is the first time.

Johnigan says living in a shelter is a first for her. She said she and her children ended up at the shelter after her landlord lost the home they were living in. Before arriving at Genesis House II, Johnigan said she and her children were staying with Jasirs father, but they left because she wanted to find a place of her own.

I just want better for my children, Johnigan said through tears. "And sometimes I feel like Im not doing enough."

But, Audi says Johnigan is right where she is supposed to be, because to him, Genesis means a new start.

We like to call the shelters names that reflect the good things about the population we are serving, Audi said. Genesis is coming from genesis, a new beginning, a new birth.

Johnigan said she hopes that is exactly what this special delivery means for her family.

I got five little people calling me mama. I got to be strong, if not for me, for them," she said.