Close to one in five Minnesota workers is unemployed or has lost work in the past few weeks due to the economic fallout from the coronavirus pandemic. As a result, many Minnesotans are struggling to pay bills and living expenses with less income than usual or none at all. If your job has been impacted by the coronavirus pandemic, you should promptly apply for unemployment benefits.
You May Be Eligible for Unemployment Benefits if:
- You have temporarily or permanently lost your job or had your hours reduced because of the coronavirus.
- A healthcare professional or health authority recommended or ordered you to avoid contact with others due to the coronavirus.
- You have been ordered not to come to your workplace due to a coronavirus outbreak.
- You have received notification from a school district, daycare, or other childcare provider that either classes are canceled or your usual childcare is unavailable, as long as you made a reasonable effort to find other childcare and requested time off or other accommodation from your employer and no reasonable accommodation was available.
How to Apply for Unemployment Benefits:
Minnesota’s unemployment insurance website provides information regarding how to apply for unemployment benefits. You can apply either online or by phone. If you need help in a language other than English, interpreters are available by phone. Internet translation tools are available if you would like to apply online.
Expanded Unemployment Benefits:
The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act, which was passed by Congress on March 27, 2020, provides additional benefits to eligible workers, self-employed individuals, and independent contractors. It includes:
- Federal Pandemic Unemployment Compensation (FPUC) – $600/week additional payments for people receiving regular or extended unemployment benefits. You do not have to apply for the $600 additional compensation. You will automatically receive this CARES Act benefit if you are eligible for any unemployment benefit program.
- Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (PUA) – provides weekly benefit payments for self-employed individuals, independent contractors, and others who are not eligible for regular or extended unemployment benefits.
- Pandemic Extended Unemployment Compensation (PEUC) – A thirteen-week extension of unemployment benefits for workers who have exhausted their regular unemployment benefits.
If you have any questions about job loss due to the coronavirus pandemic, contact our Minneapolis employment lawyers to discuss your employment situation.
