Unemployment extension is coming

OLYMPIA — People receiving unemployment benefits should watch the mail to learn how a federal extension applies to them.

The state Employment Security Department urges claimants not to call the claims center with questions because the state needs time to recode the benefits computer system.

People with active claims should still file weekly claims as usual.

The extension allows people receiving benefits to continue to do so up for to 99 weeks, said Sheryl Hutchison, an agency spokesperson, this week. Staff determines if someone is eligible.

The extension helps people fight off poverty and keep their homes, she explained.

“We know how many people are hurting in this state,” she said. “There are so many people hurting for work and so few jobs to go to.”

Washington state receives up to $900 million in federal extension benefits from now until the end of November, she said.

There are currently about five people looking for work for every job opening.

That figure has improved, as it had previously been as high as six or seven people per job opening.

“That’s an enormous gap,” she said. Normally, it’s been two people per job opening.

More than 14,000 people who used their benefits will not receive funds from the extension. It only applies to people currently receiving benefits.

During the Great Depression, there were a few states that offered unemployment insurance, she said.

It was found those states recovered better and in faster shape, as there were available workers who hadn’t left the state to find work.

For more information, visit www.esd.wa.gov.