PROVIDENCE – Gov. Daniel J. McKee on Thursday trumpeted new legislation he hopes will bring people who have been unemployed for an extended period due to the COVID-19 pandemic back to work.
McKee said the bill backed by his administration would allow those receiving unemployment insurance and the federal $300 bonus to earn more and work more hours, while staying connected to the unemployment insurance. He said he expects the bill to get a hearing in the General Assembly next week.
R.I. Commerce Corp. Secretary Stefan Pryor said the bill would enable individuals on unemployment insurance to earn 150% of their benefit amount before they are removed from such insurance – currently it is at 100%. For example, if a person is receiving $300 in unemployment insurance, they can earn up to $450 through other work before they would be disqualified from unemployment.
The bill would also allow such individuals to earn up to 50% of their benefit before it is reduced, Pryor said.
“We hope that in the next couple of weeks, there can be actual passage in some form … of those bills [in the House and Senate],” Pryor said.
McKee said he was concerned about the various local news reports about restaurants, manufacturers and other industries having difficulty hiring new employees, hence the proposed legislation.
“I’m not as concerned about the unemployment rate at this time as I am about the work rate,” McKee said. “We want to make sure our businesses have the number of hours they need to run their businesses because we’re going to have a really good summer and we want to make sure we take advantage of the full economic upturn that is coming and we fully expect.”
McKee said this legislation, if passed, would give many families “a sigh of relief,” as many are still struggling with difficult decisions over the past year.
McKee also said the state will reinstate the requirement that those on unemployment insurance must look for work. The requirement was put on pause early on in the pandemic, and McKee said more details will be announced next month.
Additionally, Pryor announced that the state has a website, named BackToWorkRI.com, which the R.I. Department of Labor and Training is assisting with to help those who are actively seeking employment. Pryor said the state can help assign job seekers a “job coach” who can connect people with businesses who are searching for work.
“We can connect you with those businesses, because there are so many out there,” Pryor said.
James Bessette is the PBN special projects editor, and also covers the nonprofit and education sectors. You may reach him at Bessette@PBN.com. You may also follow him on Twitter at @James_Bessette.
