OHIO — State Job and Family Services will begin accepting applications for the Federal Pandemic Unemployment Assistance program on Friday, according to a recent update from JFS Director Kimberly Hall. Claimants will visit the normal unemployment site, unemployment.ohio.gov to register.
The program passed back in March expands unemployment compensation to individuals affected by COVID-19, but not covered under regular unemployment.
The program creates a group of newly-covered individuals such as:
- People who did not meet earnings requirements or weeks worked for regular unemployment
- Contract workers, uber drivers and other self-employed people
- Those who lost job offers or could not start work because of COVID-19
- People who have to quarantine, self-quarantine as advised by a doctor, or who care for someone with COVID-19
- Parents whose children are now out of school and require you to be out of work to care for them
Hall says that this preregistration will help expedite the rollout of the payment system coming later in May.
“It will be a portal to preregister, get your account set up, understand if you are in the right spot sort of a pre-screening versus whether you are someone who really should be filing for regular unemployment, et cetera,” said Hall.
These claimants will receive a benefit amount similar to regular unemployment, as well as $600 additional weekly through July or the end of unemployment, whichever comes first. The PUA program expires at the end of 2020.
Claimaints under the program will receive backpay through their date of unemployment, no earlier than February 2.
Regular UI claimants have already begun to receive the additional $600 under the Federal Pandemic Unemployment Compensation program in Ohio. The state has paid out around $530M in FPUC benefits since the payments began this week.
