Laid off from work? You may have to give up unemployment benefits as states reopen
As states begin to reopen businesses from coronavirus lockdowns, laid-off workers may face a difficult decision: risk catching COVID-19 by going back or lose unemployment benefits, media outlets report.
States including Iowa and Texas have said that those who don’t go back to work could lose their benefits, including the $600 per-week bonus that Congress approved in March, according to CNN.
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott announced this week that the state’s restaurants, retail stores (including shoppping malls) and movie theaters can reopen Friday at 25% capacity, according to the Texas Tribune. Some rural areas can open at 50% percent capacity, the news outlet said.
That means thousands of workers will be expected back at work.
“Generally, if the business is legally open, the employee is an essential worker for the business, the workplace meets OSHA safety guidelines, the employer follows CDC-recommended pandemic guidelines, and the employee is not under any local orders to stay at home, the employer would be able to replace an absent worker with someone else who is available and willing to work,” employment attorney Steve Kardell told NBCDFW.
The Texas Workforce Commission said: “The employee would not be eligible to receive UI benefits if they refused to return to work,” according to NBCDFW.
An eligibility requirement for Texas Unemployment Insurance is “being available for work; being willing and able to work all the days and hours required for the type of work you are seeking.”
Labor advocates in Texas have asked the state’s workforce commission to extend jobless benefits to employees who are more vulnerable to the coronavirus, those who are caring for family members and workers who are scared to return to work, according to the Dallas Morning News.
More than 1.5 million Texans have filed for unemployment benefits in the last six weeks, according to the Texas Tribune.
Iowa will also allow the reopening of some businesses at 50% capacity, including restaurants and fitness centers, on Friday, according to the Des Moines Register.
Iowa Workforce Development announced a similar back-to-work policy, saying in a guidance:
“Refusing to return to work when recalled for any other reason, or in an attempt to continue to draw unemployment benefits will be considered a ‘voluntary quit’ which would disqualify a claimant from receiving benefits, including the Federal Pandemic Unemployment Compensation benefit of $600/weekly. An employee who is recalled on a part-time basis may continue to be eligible for benefits depending on the amount of wages they earn. ... Additionally, the self-employed should continue to report their weekly gross income as part of their continuing claims as they return to work.”
Iowa is providing training oppportunities under Future Ready Iowa to help those whose jobs have been eliminated because of the pandemic, Beth Townsend, Director of Iowa Workforce Development, said in a statement.
“The additional unemployment benefits that are provided under the CARES Act are meant to be temporary in nature and bridge the gap between the outbreak and a return to normal,” Townsend said.
The Labor Department reported Thursday that last week, 3.8 million more people filed newinitial unemployment claims, bringing the six-week total to 30.3 million, according to CNN.
This story was originally published April 30, 2020 at 3:03 PM with the headline "Laid off from work? You may have to give up unemployment benefits as states reopen."