FRANKFORT, Ky. — The Kentucky Labor Cabinet announced Tuesday that 4,723 Kentuckians will be losing extended unemployment insurance payments starting this weekend due to federal rules.
The Labor Cabinet said they were notified Monday by the U.S. Department of Labor (USDOL) that the benefits would end on November 28. This comes with just days notice to Kentuckians and at the start of the holiday season.
According to the Kentucky Labor Cabinet, the USDOL said the state’s insured unemployment rate (IUR), which is the number of people currently receiving unemployment insurance as a percentage of the labor force, had fallen below the threshold for the state to continue administering extended UI benefits.
Kentucky’s 13-week IUR for the week ending November 7 was 4.67% which is below the 5.00% of the necessary threshold. Therefore, the extended benefits period for Kentucky will end on November 28, and the state will be barred from distributing benefits for a minimum of 13 weeks, the news release states.
Gov. Andy Beshear said Kentucky families are struggling and hurting financially, but he has no recourse to reverse the federal agency’s decision, according to the news release.
“As we have noted before, the USDOL sets the rules for unemployment eligibility, and we are required to follow those rules,” Gov. Beshear said.
The governor said he was disappointed because Kentuckians are relying on extended unemployment aid at a time when many are out of work due to the coronavirus.
The state will not be able to pay any extended benefits after Nov. 28. No new applications will be accepted after that date, and claimants who have yet to exhaust all benefits will not receive the balance of their funds.
Claimants who continue to be off work due to COVID-19, however, may be eligible for PUA benefits through the end of the year.
The loss of the extended benefit program will not affect the ability of Kentuckians losing their jobs to qualify for traditional unemployment insurance or the state’s ability to administer that program, the release states.