Laid off because of the coronavirus pandemic? Q&A on filing for unemployment

Coronavirus effect on Businesses

A sign at the Harrisburg Mall in Swatara Township announces the closure of the business due to the coronavirus pandemic. Businesses react to the coronavirus COVID-19 pandemic. March 23, 2020. Dan Gleiter | dgleiter@pennlive.com

Lots of people who have never been thrown out of work before are finding themselves in the unfamiliar position of navigating public assistance programs for the first time in their lives because of the coronavirus pandemic.

We’re here to help, and actually, so is the state.

Labor & Industry Secretary Jerry Oleksiak and Unemployment Compensation Benefits Policy Director Susan Dickinson took questions from the press Tuesday about situations Pennsylvanians may run into, and what they need to know. Here’s what we learned:

1. What if my business is still open, but I have to miss work because I or someone I care for is affected by coronavirus?

A good first question because a newly-passed federal act guarantees, for most workers at companies with more than 50 employees, two weeks of paid leave if they are hospitalized or in quarantine because of COVID-19, or are required to care for someone who has been ordered to quarantine. Workers can also receive up to 12 weeks of leave at two-thirds regular salary to care for children who are out of school or day care because of forced closures.

If this applies to you, it should be your first option.

If you have simply lost your job because of a lay-off or temporary business closure, read on.

2. File online, if you can.

The unemployment compensation system is facing an unprecedented surge in new claims this month, but the best way for you to control your own destiny in terms of getting your claim filed is to try to file by computer at www.uc.pa.gov. That will save you the exasperation of indefinite wait times trying to get through on the telephone.

Claims can be taken over the telephone if absolutely necessary, Dickinson said, but because of the high demand - there were nearly 834,684 claims filed since March 15, shattering all past records - for everyone’s sanity it is best to leave the lines open for those who have no other filing options.

3. Wait to open your unemployment claim until the first day that you are actually missing work.

One quirk in the system has always been that you can’t file a claim until you are literally missing work. So if you’re boss tells you Friday that you are furloughed effective Monday, wait until Monday to put your claim in.

4. How do I know if I’m eligible?

Dickinson’s advice is to file first, and let the department figure out the rest.

That’s in part because they want everyone who is eligible to receive the benefits they are due. Unemployment compensation, Franklin & Marshall Economics Professor Yeva Nersisyan notes, is on of the great automatic stabilizers for the American economy in any downturn. And besides, if you’ve worked, chances are you’ve paid into the system in the past.

Secondly, the just-passed economic rescue bill passed by Congress and signed by President Donald Trump has expanded the program both in terms of eligibility and benefits paid, so you truly should get your claim in.

5. What are some of those expansions?

Well, for starters, the new bill has added a flat, $600 federally-funded expansion of benefits to all claims for four months. That is intended to help workers retain something close to 100 percent of their working pay during their layoff; unemployment benefits typically replace about half of a person’s income and are capped in Pennsylvania this year at $572 per week in any case.

The period someone can receive benefits is being extended for those already in the system by an additional 13 weeks.

Finally, the field of eligibility has also been broadened to include many self-employed workers and participant in the so-called “gig" economy, like people who drive for Uber or Lyft and find their calls reduced. More patience required here, though. Oleksiak and Dickinson said the states are still awaiting final guidances from the Trump Administration before they can fully implement those changes.

6. Think of your jobless benefit as a new kind of paycheck; in other words, there is a lag till benefits start and you have to fill out your “timesheet.”

You have to file for your benefits every two weeks that you are still not working. This is sort of like filling out your time sheet at work, Dickinson says. Put that certification in at the end of the two-week period, and then you’ll receive your money two or three days later either via direct deposit or loaded onto a state-issued benefits card.

Example: If you opened your claim between March 15 and 21, the first day you can file for benefits was Sunday, March 29. For claims opened between March 22 and 28, file for benefits starting April 5.

“It really is just like getting paid for a job,” Dickinson said. “You don’t get payments up front. It’s done after the fact, just like a paycheck.”

Policymakers hope is that the last paycheck from the employer will breech the gap.

7. Why are so many Pennsylvanians filing in comparison to other states?

Oleksiak offered two primary reasons. Gov. Tom Wolf moved earlier than many surrounding states to order business closures, and Pennsylvania is one of the few large states that does not have a mandatory sick or paid-time-off leave policy which is the first landing spot for many furloughed workers and their employers.

8. Other questions?

Dickinson advised everyone to visit the Labor & Industry web site, where a “frequently asked questions” page is continually being refreshed with the top questions that are on everyone’s mind.

In the meantime, Oleksiak had this last ask of residents.

He hopes that Pennsylvanians in need of assistance will be understand that there may be times, as reportedly occurred for an hour or so both Sunday and Monday.

“We have gone basically within a matter of days from a period of low unemployment claims to historical highs. It’s like nothing we’ve ever seen before,” Oleksiak said, noting the department is looking at bringing additional staff and calling back some retirees for emergency duty to help process claims.

“We are looking at all we can to respond to the situation we’re in... We want to provide people with answers. We want to provide them with the unemployment they’re entitled to, and we’re doing all we can as fast as we can to get there.”

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