Important New Information on Unemployment Benefits Extensions
November 16th, 2009Federal legislation has been passed that allows for additional Emergency Unemployment Compensation (EUC) benefits to be paid to certain claimants for weeks beginning on or after November 8, 2009. Individuals eligible should have received a mailing from the Division of Employment Security through Missouri’s Department of Labor and Industrial Relations. General information from the state is provided in this article.From the Missouri Department of Labor and Industrial Relations:
INFORMATION REGARDING THE WORKER ASSISTANCE ACT 2009
ADDITIONAL EMERGENCY UNEMPLOYMENT COMPENSATION (EUC)
IMPORTANT INFORMATION TO CLAIMANTS
Federal legislation has been passed that allows for additional Emergency Unemployment Compensation (EUC) benefits to be paid to certain claimants for weeks beginning on or after November 8, 2009. The Division of Employment Security’s (DES) records indicate you may be eligible for the additional EUC. This notice is to inform you what must be done in order for the DES to determine your eligibility. This notice does NOT mean you will get the additional EUC. These benefits are potentially available for those workers who are not yet back to work full-time.
To file for these additional EUC, complete the FRONT AND BACK of the enclosed application and mail or fax BOTH SIDES to: Division of Employment Security, Claims Programs Unit, P. O. Box 3915, Jefferson City, MO 65102-3915, FAX: 573-751-9730. DO NOT FAX THE APPLICATION TO ANY OTHER NUMBER. You also can submit a request for the additional EUC through the DES Web site. The initial filing of the additional EUC can only be done through the completion of the enclosed application or through the DES Web site. Visit www.mo.claim.mo.gov, click on “File Unemployment Claim”. If you submit this request on-line, you will receive a confirmation page to print and keep for your records. Submit the application only once using the mail, fax or Internet. DO NOT CALL A REGIONAL CLAIMS CENTER (RCC) TO APPLY FOR THE ADDITIONAL EUC.
If the benefit year has ended on your regular unemployment insurance (UI) claim, the application will be processed to determine your eligibility to file a new regular UI claim. If you are not eligible for regular UI benefits on a new Missouri claim or on an interstate basis and have exhausted benefits under both of the Emergency Unemployment Compensation (EUC08) claims and the Missouri Extended Benefits (EB) claim, the application then will be processed to determine your eligibility for the additional EUC. You will be contacted if additional information is needed.
If you currently are filing weekly certifications (claims), continue to file each week. Use the automated telephone system (Option 2, then 1) or Web site at www.moclaim.mo.gov, View Unemployment Claims status, to see if benefits have been paid. Once your application is processed, you will receive a notice of eligibility in the mail. Allow at least two (2) weeks after submitting the application for it to be processed. Applications cannot be processed until guidelines are received from the federal government, so there may be a delay from the time you submit the application and when you receive the notice of eligibility.
If you have not been filing weekly certifications (claims), you should begin doing so when you receive the notice of the additional EUC eligibility in the mail. The effective date of your claim for additional EUC may cover several past weeks, so when filing your first weekly certification (claim), be certain to claim all prior weeks presented if you want to receive benefits for those weeks.
Under the additional EUC payments, regular work search requirements apply. You will not be required to mail in your work search log every five weeks. Union workers that get work through hiring halls will only be required to make one weekly contact with their hiring halls.
If you currently are receiving weekly benefit payments under the Trade Readjustment Assistance (TRA) program, you must establish and claim all benefits available under this additional EUC extension before you can again begin receiving weekly benefits under the TRA program. Subsistence payments will continue to be processed using the TRA-22 form.