SALT LAKE CITY, Utah (ABC4 News) — A three-week “Lost Wages Assistance” is now available to eligible Utahns, according to the Department of Workforce Services.
Lost Wages Assistance is only immediately available for three weeks from July 26 to August 15 for individuals whose weekly unemployment benefit amount was at least $100, they were eligible for one of the standard unemployment programs, and they were unemployed or partially unemployed as a direct result of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Benefits will be automatically calculated and distributed within four weeks based on unemployment claims received; individuals do not need to call or apply separately for this benefit.
“We are happy to announce that Utah was one of the first of seven states to apply for and be approved for the Lost Wages Assistance program, providing additional support for those receiving unemployment assistance,” said Kevin Burt, Unemployment Insurance Division director for the Utah Department of Workforce Services.
He added, “The funding is currently limited to $300 for a period of three weeks, but we chose to participate in order to ensure Utahns had access to the additional federal resources temporarily available.”
There were 5,321 new claims filed for unemployment benefits for the week of August 9 to August 15, with a total of $25,821,230 of benefits paid.
There were 66,984 continued claims filed during that same week.
The number of individuals who have not requested a benefit for two consecutive weeks as of August 8, 2020 was 7,412. A total of 4,750 met the same criteria during the previous week.
If an individual’s employment has been impacted by COVID-19, they should visit jobs.utah.gov/covid19 for updated information including help for employees and employers returning to work.
