Connecticut residents collecting unemployment will once again have to demonstrate they are actively looking for work to keep their benefits, the state Department of Labor announced Thursday.
Labor Commissioner Kurt Westby said the work search requirement will come back into effect May 30, as part of the state’s economic reopening.
“Now that the vaccine is widely available and we have public health guidance in place to reduce the infection rate, many residents are heading back to work,” Westby said. “We’ve seen a steady decline in both the number of people filing for weekly benefits and the unemployment rate — good news for businesses and the economy. Reinstating work search requirements will support the state’s ongoing recovery and reopening efforts.”
The Labor Department waived the work search mandate for state unemployment compensation in March 2020, as Connecticut went into lockdown in an attempt to halt the spread of the coronavirus. At the time, labor officials reasoned that there were few if any jobs for unemployed people to return to, and public health interests would be better served if all but the most essential workers remained at home.
With the worst of the COVID-19 crisis now believed to be over, and various employers complaining of a worker shortage, pressure from businesses to pare back access to benefits has been growing at both the state and federal level.
Starting May 30, claimants must make “reasonable” job search efforts by contacting at least one potential employer per week in their field of specialty or experience and retain documentation of all work search-related activities. They must also complete at least two additional job search tasks each week, which can include participating in a job interview, attending a workshop at an American Job Center or job fair, creating a “reemployment” plan or creating a profile on a professional networking site, among other activities.
For the month of June, jobless residents receiving unemployment payments will have to keep their own records of their efforts to find work. The Labor Department said it will provide a form for guidance.
Beginning in July, all claimants will be required to report their job search activity online.
Claimants who do not participate in approved work search activities will be denied unemployment compensation for that week, according to labor officials.
