The Department of Labor on Thursday was eligible for unemployment benefits for those facing unsafe workplaces, as well as parents who are not working, who had to quit their jobs when schools and childminders closed and had no jobs when children went to the classroom do not return.
Specifically, the Department of Labor has expanded the conditions under which workers are eligible for unemployment insurance payments through the Pandemic Unemployment Assistance Program (PUA). The order extends the suitability to:
- Workers who were denied unemployment benefits after refusing to work in unsafe conditions
- School staff and employees affected by reduced salaries due to school closures or who are not guaranteed continued payment
- Any worker who has reduced their working hours or who has lost their job as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic
“Today’s leadership opens the door to relief for workers who are faced with difficult, if not impossible choices, between accepting work in an unsafe workplace to receive a steady source of income and protecting their health and the of their loved ones, “Patricia Smith, senior adviser to the Secretary of Labor, said in a statement on Thursday.
In addition to allowing school staff and workers who feel unsafe to claim unemployment benefits, the new guidance also provides relief to those who have had to deal with childcare and school closures affecting their work, even after schools have personally attended again.
‘This is good news for a cause we’ve seen a lot: parents [who] left work when schools were closed, jobs replaced them, and then they were out of work, but the school is open again, ”Elizabeth Pancotti, policy director at Employ America, tweeted on Thursday. She noted that if parents had to quit their jobs as a result of Covid-19, even if schools reopened, they would be eligible to receive unemployment benefits.
Workers can now choose more than one reason for their unemployment, so that they can remain eligible for benefits even if one of the reasons disappears.
The new guidance fixes this ‘noticeable problem’ for parents who had to stop working because their child’s school was closed due to Covid-19 and then had no more work to return to, said Andrew Stettner, a senior fellow at the Century Foundation and leading expertise in unemployment insurance.
The latest extension of suitability is part of the PUA program, which was introduced under the CARES Act relief package passed by Congress about a year ago. The program specifically covers business owners, self-employed Americans, gig workers, and independent contractors who are out of work or have significantly reduced hours due to the coronavirus pandemic. The PUA program is federally funded but managed by each state.
The changes that are eligible on Thursday are retroactive, so workers who were previously denied unemployment can reapply for PUA and receive benefits from the start of their unemployment period.
The Labor Department also recommends that states offer workers the option to choose more than one reason for their unemployment based on Covid-19. This way, they can remain eligible for benefits even if one of the reasons disappears.