North Carolinians who are furloughed or lose their jobs due to the temporary federal government shutdown may apply for unemployment benefits as soon as they are affected, the state Commerce Department said Monday.
Applications are filed through the state Division of Employment Security.
Affected employees can apply for state unemployment benefits online at des.nc.gov. A MyNCUIBenefits account is required.
In North Carolina, the first eligible week of any claim is considered as a “waiting week.”
“You will not get benefits for this week; it is not included in your weeks of payment,” according to the division. “After you have applied for benefits, you must file a certification for each week that you want to get benefits.”
The Office of State Human Resources cautioned Wednesday that up to 200 state employees are being furloughed without pay as a result of the shutdown that began Wednesday.
“Anyone can apply for unemployment benefits if they have lost their jobs through no fault of their own,” said Antwon Keith, the employment security division’s assistant secretary. “These benefits exist to help people cope with financial uncertainty until they find work.”
The state Office of State Human Resources said that “given other federal cuts and a more constrained state fiscal environment, this shutdown has left the state with no other viable path forward.”
“Depending on the length of the shutdown, there may be additional furloughs for federally funded employees as funding sources are exhausted.”
Keith cautioned that federal employees who choose to take unemployment benefits during the shutdown may have to repay benefits if they receive backpay from their agency.
Federal employee status
President Donald Trump and members of his administration have projected waves of job cuts affecting hundreds of thousands of federal employees, including tens of thousands in N.C.
During a federal government shutdown, some federal employees may be required to work without pay. Those employees may not be eligible for unemployment benefits if they are working full time during the shutdown.
According to NPR, because the Oct. 1 shutdown happened toward the end of a pay period, the first full paycheck missed for federal employees will be Oct. 24, while for the military it will be Oct. 15.
State Human Resources Director Staci Meyer said furloughed state employees will be provided with resources through a dedicated hub on its website.
Furloughed employees can apply for temporary employment, including through Temporary Solutions. Additional resources can be found at OSHR’s Furlough Resource Center.
The State Health Plan is paid a month in advance, ensuring that affected employees will retain their health care coverage through October.
Applying for unemployment benefits
Applicants need the following documentation:
* Name and address of all employers you worked with within the last 18 months;
* Social Security number or your Alien Registration number;
* W-2, Leave and Earnings statements (LES), or pay stubs from the past 18 months;
* Standard Form (SF)-50 Notification of Personnel Action is not required, “but strongly encouraged;”
* SF-8 Notice to Federal Employee About Unemployment Benefits, also not required “but strongly encouraged;”
* Submit a Form ETA-935 Affidavit of Federal Civilian Service, Wages and Reason of Separation: This form explains your federal job and why you were separated
Go to des.nc.gov/need-help/identity-verification for more information.
Federal workers who already have an ID.me account may skip full verification. They need to go into their ID.me account, use a valid email address that is not their government email, and give consent to share information with the employment security division.
rcraver@wsjournal.com
336-727-7376
@rcraverWSJ
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