PROVIDENCE – The R.I. Department of Labor and Training said that it will begin disbursing funds to unemployed workers from the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s Lost Wages Assistance program.
Claimants that are unemployed as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic will receive an additional $300 in unemployment payments for the weeks ending Aug. 1, Aug. 8 and Aug. 15 in a lump sum by Sept. 12. Recipients will have had to successfully been certified for benefits on those weeks to receive payment.
The program provides an additional $300 per week to those who earned $100 or more in unemployment benefits in a designated week. Gov. Gina M. Raimondo signed an executive order raising the minimum state benefit rate to $100 for the designated weeks. Claimants that would have fallen below the $100 threshold will receive the difference of their disbursement and the $100 minimum in a separate deposit after the LWA fund has been disbursed, DLT said.
“Thousands of Rhode Islanders are struggling as a result of COVID-19, so I’m proud that we were able to get this program implemented as quickly as possible in under two weeks,” said Scott Jensen, DLT director. “While the LWA grant will provide some much-needed temporary assistance, we hope that Congress will work to enact a longer-lasting solution as soon as possible.”
