IN THE NEWS | WCP : Some Laid Off D.C. Workers Should See Unemployment Benefits This Week After One Month Delay In Payments

April 21, 2021 The Advoc8te

D.C. workers who were laid off during the coronavirus pandemic and filed for unemployment could start seeing payments again this week after going roughly one month without benefits. Department of Employment Services Director Unique Morris-Hughes said claimants should receive payments starting Tuesday, April 20, so long as they have been filing weekly online or by email and, more importantly, the agency has cleared them for eligibility. “As long as they’ve certified and they’re eligible, there will not be any issues with them receiving their payments,” Morris-Hughes said during a press call on Monday. It’s unclear how many people the agency has deemed ineligible in the latest round of disbursements, or how quickly claimants are being notified of their eligibility. Thousands of Washingtonians have not received unemployment benefits since late March because DOES had to update its antiquated system to implement President Joe Biden’s $1.9 trillion stimulus bill, the American Rescue Plan Act, which was signed into law March 11. Morris-Hughes announced on Friday that the system updates related to the federal legislation were completed, so claimants could start accessing benefits without interruptions. The director originally estimated that updates would be completed by April 9. They ultimately took 24 days.

AMANDA MICHELLE GOMEZ/ Washington City Paper/APRIL 20TH, 2021