For those currently unemployed - help thread

[The Heretic]

Get while the getting is good for those leeeeean times.

What I tell my kids (and others) when they complain about working overtime; make hay while the sun shines. You never know when the fecal matter will hit the fan. The one good thing about 2020 is that a LOT more people now realize that this can happen without any warning. I hope they take the lesson to heart and prepare for the future better.

 

[Flopsweat]

What I tell my kids (and others) when they complain about working overtime; make hay while the sun shines. You never know when the fecal matter will hit the fan. The one good thing about 2020 is that a LOT more people now realize that this can happen without any warning. I hope they take the lesson to heart and prepare for the future better.

Coworker when I was in college: "They really want us to work overtime again?"
Me: "They pay us time and a half Saturday and double Sunday."
Coworker: "I'm missing all kinds of bubblegum."
Me: "How much money do you have saved up?"
Coworker:" <blank stare>

 

[The Heretic]

I always volunteered for overtime or any extra work I could get. The only time I would pass on it was when I had family obligations, such as birthdays, XMas/etc.

My last job I only got overtime a few times in the 9 years I worked there and it was limited to maybe 8-10 hours per week. At least it was paid for - most of the positions I have worked after college I was salaried and exempt from being paid for overtime, but it was expected.

 

[The Heretic]

It appears quite a number of people who filed regular UI, April or later, and are currently on PEUC are getting paid for their waiting week from regular benefits.

I am on PEUC. My waiting week was the first week of April. I got paid both the regular benefit amount plus the $600 federal benefit.

I counted it up and was a full 26 weeks of regular benefits if you count the waiting week.

I looked and I now have four weeks of PEUC benefits left, which will take me to 12/26/20, whereas before I would have technically gone another week - I think - but I would not have been paid for that last week as PEUC expires 12/31, and that last week goes into 2021. So I am hoping I will go into EB (state extended benefits).

 

[The Heretic]

Congress is still playing the delay game - upping the ante and getting further apart instead of getting closer together.

The dems want the full nine yards ($2T plus), including a federal $600 UI benefit that lasts into October 2021.

The GOP (McConnell) responds with less every time - down from $900B to $500B.

I wouldn't bother with trying to speculate what the result will be - if any, all predictions thus far, beyond stalling and zero stimulus have failed.

https://www.cnbc.com/2020/12/01/coronavirus-stimulus-update-senators-to-unveil-relief-bill.html?fbclid=IwAR1hvmLL5S_b5npEtF3Y3MkMxWvKGDbRTrag0YLATd2dHmyhS6jKHPMNAak

 

[ilikegunspdx]

Just curious after talking to a friend that needs exterior house painting done, is there a thread on here for "help wanted (Hiring)/work wanted (Looking for work)"?

 

[The Heretic]

Yes, there are several.

At least one for "help wanted" that I recall - although it may be pre-pandemic.

Another for helping out people in general (I offered free firewood - u-cut - but no takers) - much more recent and pandemic related.

 

[The Heretic]

Here we go again: The US could start losing jobs very soon

The job market recovery is at risk of stalling out as the pandemic intensifies. The rapid loss of momentum in the economy raises the pressure on Washington to do what should be a no-brainer: provide more fiscal relief.

www.cnn.com

 

[The Heretic]

I've not been speculating on this, but tt looks like the Unemployment relief bill may get passed this week or next.

At this point there will be no general "stimulus" check going out to everybody.

What will probably happen is a 3 month extension of federal unemployment programs (PEUC/PUA) - or at least some of them.

Also, there will probably be a $300 federal supplement on top of state benefits. Rumor is that it may be retroactive from Dec 1, 2020 until the federal extension ends.

We shall see.

 

[The Heretic]

duplicate glitch

 

[NW Backpacker]

Negatively affected by COVID? Live in PDX? You have until 6:00 TODAY to apply to win $500. 22 MINUTES LEFT! Just heard it on the news:

PDX Assist - Home

 

[The Heretic]

So it appears that Congress did their usual trick and waited until the last minute - and then some - to agree on the "relief" bill. They will probably vote on it today - probably going to be attached to the yearly spending bill.

Here is a decent summary of what it entails:

Covid relief bill offers 11 weeks of extra unemployment benefits, $300 boost and a supplement for some gig workers

A Covid relief deal reached Sunday night by Congress would extend and enhance unemployment benefits for millions of workers.

www.cnbc.com

 

[The Heretic]

So the relief bill passed and now Trump will sign it (I assume).

 

[Flopsweat]

So the relief bill passed and now Trump will sign it (I assume).

I'm not sure he will. It's loaded with pork and people are not happy. Something like $900 billion and only $180 billion is the $600 going to us. I personally hope he doesn't sign it. It's an absolute outrage.

 

[The Heretic]

Millions of workers will have to submit new documents for pandemic unemployment benefits in 2021

The new verification process could impact some 10 million people currently drawing from Pandemic Unemployment Assistance and new applicants in 2021.

www.cnbc.com

 

[The Heretic]

So, you may have heard; Trump signed the relief bill - finally. One day too late for some (many?) people; the talk is that there will be a gap in payments because of the date the bill was signed - Sunday instead of Saturday.

It remains to be seen what this actually means.

Also, for those of us who would be transferred to Extended Benefits (EB - a state program) this week because PEUC ran out last week and Trump didn't sign the bill until Sunday (not sure if that is relevant for this or not), it is not known what happens when we go (if we go) onto EB from PEUC. Whether the state will push us back onto PEUC or leave us on EB.

I would think that because PEUC funding is federal, they may try to push us back onto PEUC.

Not sure the state knows.

We may not know for weeks.

 

[MTpockets]

Hope there isn't a long delay...and hopefully, people have made choices that help them more easily navigate current difficulties.

It probably took the President some time to read that thing. What was it, almost 6,000 pages? Yikes.

I am not sure if I mentioned it already, but I will now. Great Thread with useful information!

I know a person who hasn't received adjudication on a claim filed 4 months ago. They have found employment, since the time of the filing... but have not received a decision on or a payment for unemployment compensation.

Most of the people, that I know, have had no break in employment. I am not sure that will hold by the last month of 2021.

 

[The Heretic]

I got my $600 from the IRS today, and my UI benefits for last week were paid too.

Now it remains to been seen who gets paid for this week and what we get paid.

I am probably starting work as a self-employed consultant next week. Small side projects for a software company. First one is fixed price and I probably won't get paid for it until I finish. Not sure how to enter that in the UI form, if at all. My understanding is that if you get paid hourly, you file and log the hours and the $ earned even if you get paid, but if you are self-employed and don't get paid until finished, then???

I will probably enter that I worked but earned zero $ until the week I get paid.

 

[The Heretic]

Unemployed Oregonians to see extra $300 soon, lapse in benefits unlikely

Most Oregonians could see their unemployment benefits continue next week, potentially with an extra $300 per payment, according to the Oregon Employment Department. Initially, agency officials feared as many as 72,000 people could see a gap in benefit payments while the Oregon Employment...

katu.com

 

[The Heretic]

Employment 12-31.docx

docs.google.com

Good evening legislators,

Yesterday, Director Gerstenfeld resumed his weekly media briefings. The video and audio links from the briefing are now live.

Like all of you, we are focused on the Continued Assistance for Unemployed Workers Act, which was signed into law late Sunday. We are relieved that the act, which extends many of the provisions from the CARES Act, was signed into law, keeping approximately 72,000 people in our state from losing a critical safety net, and offering additional assistance to other Oregonians in need.

While we are glad that Congress has officially enacted the eleven-week extension of much-needed benefits, our teams need guidance from the U.S. DOL to correctly implement the unemployment insurance provisions of the bill. We received our first formal guidance from the U.S. DOL this morning and anticipate receiving more over the next month as questions about the new legislation arise. We will keep you updated with information as we receive it.

In the meantime, we are moving quickly to make the changes in our programming that do not require guidance from the U.S. Department of Labor. Your constituents should continue claiming their weekly benefits as they have been, no matter what program they are in. If possible, we are asking claimants to avoid calling us with questions about the federal program as some Oregonians still need to contact us via phone to receive their benefits.

If a constituent would like to contact us, please encourage them to submit their questions through our contact form. Questions will be answered in the order in which they are received. They can also sign-up for our email list to get important benefit information and announcements.

The next unemployment insurance webinar will focus on the new federal relief legislation. The webinar begins 1 p.m. on Thursday, Jan. 7, at which point we are hoping to have the more guidance on the program from the Department of Labor, and therefore more information to share. Register here.

Finally, below you will find a more extensive breakdown of the new legislation, for those interested.

Happy New Year!




What we know about the new legislation:
We know from our experience when congress passed the CARES Act in the spring that additional federal guidance may come in piecemeal. So far, we know that the new legislation created lots of other changes in addition to the extensions and the new Mixed-Earner Unemployment Compensation (MEUC) program. There are a few things about the relief package we'd like to share:

• First: The Dept. of Labor has confirmed that claimants will NOT lose a week of PUA, PEUC, or FPUC benefits as a result of the delayed signing of the new act. Once we are able to begin issuing payments, we will pay those benefits retroactively for eligible claimants who file—and they will receive up to the full eleven weeks of benefits that the legislation allows.
• Second: While we have not yet heard how the delayed signing may impact other parts of the bill, we do know that Federal Pandemic Unemployment Compensation (FPUC) will return for the time period between Dec. 27, 2020 and the week ending March 13, 2021, this time at $300 per week instead of the previous $600 per week.
• Third: We also know that there are several changes made to both PUA and PEUC, including limitations on backdating and additional requirements to deter fraud. We are awaiting further federal guidance on these programs.
• Lastly, we know that federal funding for WorkShare benefits has been extended through March 13, 2021. This means that for employers that already use WorkShare, or those employers that will start to, those benefits will not impact their future UI tax rates.

While we analyze the guidance received this morning, and await additional guidance in the weeks to come, we are moving forward on related work so that we can begin issuing payments as quickly as possible—we are analyzing the language in the bill, interpreting what the new rules may mean for how we process claims, strategizing how we will prioritize IT projects, and are already working on changes we're aware of, to ensure that we can move quickly with both initial and further guidance.

We have determined that we will implement Mixed-Earner Unemployment Compensation (MEUC), which will provide an additional $100 per week to people receiving regular UI and who also have documented self-employment income above $5,000. States have the option to choose whether or not to implement this program, and we and the Governor agree we should do so. We do need guidance from DOL to move forward with implementation of this new program, but for now it is confirmed that Oregon will offer MEUC benefits.

The MEUC program will be one of the more challenging newly-enacted provisions for us to implement and there are significant unknowns regarding the federal parameters we will have to follow. The law requires verification of self-employment income for MEUC benefits, but we have not yet been told what type of verification is acceptable.

We are not the only state awaiting guidance about this new program. In fact, all states have many unanswered questions. Once we get the answers, it will take extensive IT programming, training our staff, and will involve manual processes.

Until we analyze the initial federal guidance on some of the changes we will have to make, begin making those changes, and await further guidance, it is difficult to answer the question Oregonians are anxious to know: "when will the new benefits be paid?" Because we know how important this is, we want to share the best information we have, even when we know it is still very tentative.

• Our hope is to start paying FPUC – the additional $300 per week, next week.
• We also hope that people who were already receiving PUA benefits, and still had several weeks of benefits remaining on their claim, will be able to receive their benefits next week. This means that for most of the 72,000 Oregonians who faced losing all benefits, it is possible they will continue to get benefits next week.
• We do not yet have an estimate on when people who were nearing exhaustion of the benefit program they were on, or people who are filing new PUA claims, will begin receiving benefits but we will share that information as it becomes available.
• Within MEUC, there is an additional $100 for mixed income earners (also known as "hybrid" workers), that will be exceptionally challenging to implement. We are committed to providing these benefits, but do not yet know when we will be able to start making those payments. It may not be until March.

Oregonians have many questions and want to know what the new relief package means for them.

• Claimants do not need to call with questions about the federal benefit programs at this time, and should avoid doing so, as some Oregonians do still need to get in touch with us by phone in order to receive their benefits.
• We will share information and updates about the federal package, including any instructions for claimants, as soon as new information emerges. We'll share information over social media and through email updates to our subscribers, updating the FAQs and "chatbot" on our website, and will continue sharing information with the press.

In the meantime, we are encouraging claimants to continue filing their weekly claims, regardless of which program they are on. That is the most beneficial thing people can do right now: keep filling your weekly claims as you have been.


Claims updates

• Focus Adjudication
  • As of Sept. 30, 2020, approximately 52,000 people had claims in adjudication that we have been working to resolve. This week, of that 52,000, there are about 1,000 people with claims in adjudication; most (about 700) of those will be resolved early next week and we believe we will be able to complete the remaining by the end of the first week of the year.
  • Standing up all these new and changed programs will not slow down our adjudication work.
• Waiting Week
  • So far, we have paid approximately 418,000 people for their waiting week, totaling $286 million.
  • We had hoped to pay the vast majority of all eligible waiting week payments by the end of January 2021. We are ahead of that goal and were able to do additional automation and work through these quicker than originally anticipated, and updated our goal to get almost all of them paid by the end of December. On Nov. 30, about 170,000 claimants needed to have their waiting week payment manually processed, and today that number is down to about 9,000 claimants. Their cases are the most complicated, and we committed to getting them paid as quickly as we can.

Other updates
Temporary rules update

• To allow flexibility for Work Share participants, we are adopting a temporary rule to allow Work Share participants to use any type of accrued paid leave, other than vacation, to bring their work hour reduction within the required 20% to 40% range of reduced hours.
• If an employee uses approved, accrued leave during a week, those leave hours count as hours worked during the week. This is regardless of if the reduction in work hours was due to the employee missing an opportunity to work for their employer.
• This temporary rule is effective December 27, 2020 through June 25, 2021.

2020 Taxes

• As the year comes to a close and we start looking ahead to tax season, we want to remind everyone that all unemployment insurance benefits—regardless of which benefit program—are considered taxable income.
• About one-third of all Oregonians who received unemployment benefits this year do not have federal or state taxes withheld on their claims. The rest (about two-thirds) have either federal, or state, or both federal and state taxes withheld from their unemployment checks.
• Everyone who received unemployment benefits in 2020 will receive their 1099-G tax form. This form states how much they received in unemployment benefits in 2020. They will receive the form in the mail by the end of January and it will also be available online, via the Online Claim System. You do not need to call us to request a 1099-G.