Title: COVID-19 and the CARES Act: What It Could Mean For You
Headings: The Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security Act (“CARES Act”): What It Could Mean For You
The Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security Act (“CARES Act”): What It Could Mean For You
Content: In addition, the CARES Act provides an enhanced unemployment benefit to employees impacted by COVID-19, enabling employees to receive up to an additional $600.00 per week in unemployment insurance benefits through Federal Pandemic Unemployment Compensation. Furthermore, individuals may receive unemployment benefits for up to 39 weeks due to partial or full unemployment caused by COVID-19 during the period of January 27, 2020 to December 31, 2020, and the law is retroactive, so employees who lost their jobs due to COVID-19 prior to March 27, 2020 may be eligible to receive these enhanced benefits. The CARES Act applies to all employers and employees regardless of job sector or size. Notably, under the CARES Act, individuals who are eligible for unemployment benefits under state or federal law will receive $600 per week in addition to their regular unemployment compensation under state law, through July 2020, even if, with this enhanced benefit, the employee ends up receiving more money through unemployment than their pre-unemployment earnings level. For example, in New Jersey the current maximum state unemployment benefit is $713/week for 26 weeks. The CARES Act could create a weekly unemployment insurance benefit up to $1,313/week under certain circumstances. The CARES Act also eliminates waiting periods for unemployment. While some states already have waived this requirement, if a state waives its standard waiting period and employees begin receiving unemployment compensation benefits immediately upon qualifying for them, the federal government will fund that first week of those benefits. In addition, the federal government will fund up to an additional 13 weeks of eligibility for benefits, increasing the unemployment benefit period from the 26-week maximum that is customary under most states’ unemployment paradigms and increasing it to 39 weeks (at a rate of $600/week for that additional 13-week period). The CARES Act also expands the reasons for which an employee may become eligible to receive unemployment benefits due to COVID-19.