Alabama to end pandemic-related unemployment programs

Alabama will end its participation in all federally-funded pandemic unemployment programs on June 19.

Gov. Kay Ivey announced the move this afternoon, making the state the latest to end the programs that added money to unemployment benefits and began last year as a response to massive layoffs in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The programs include Federal Pandemic Unemployment Compensation, which provides for an additional $300 weekly payment to the state’s maximum weekly benefit amount of $275.

It also includes Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (PUA) for the self-employed, gig workers, and part-time workers; Pandemic Emergency Unemployment Compensation (PEUC), an extension of benefits once regular benefits have been exhausted, and Mixed Earner Unemployment Compensation (MEUC), an additional $100 benefit to certain people with mixed earnings.

In addition, the Alabama Department of Labor has reinstated the work search requirement for all claimants, which was temporarily waived during the height of the pandemic. This requires all claimants to actively search for work to remain eligible for unemployment benefits.

According to the governor’s office, any weeks filed prior to and up to June 19 which are eligible under any of the federal program requirements will continue to be processed.

South Carolina, Arkansas and Montana in the past week have announced they will suspend their participation in the programs. The decisions come after hiring slowed nationally in April, with some companies blaming enhanced unemployment benefits for the inability to fill positions.

In her announcement, Ivey alluded to the programs “contributing to a labor shortage that is compromising the continuation of our economic recovery.” She cited the state’s current unemployment rate of 3.8 percent, the lowest in the Southeast.

“As Alabama’s economy continues its recovery, we are hearing from more and more business owners and employers that it is increasingly difficult to find workers to fill available jobs, even though job openings are abundant,” Ivey said. “Our Department of Labor is reporting that there are more available jobs now than prior to the pandemic. Jobs are out there.”

Alabama Department of Labor Secretary Fitzgerald Washington said the department has more posted job ads than in February or March of last year, just before the pandemic started, when Alabama posted a historic low in unemployment claims.

““Ads for workers in the leisure and hospitality industry are up by 73%,” Washington said. “Overall, ads are up by nearly 40%. There are plenty of opportunities available in multiple industries in Alabama.”

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