S.C. Department of Employment and Workforce begins paying the $300 Federal Pandemic Unemployment Compensation

Posted

On Monday, Jan. 4, the Department of Employment and Workforce
paid more than $10 million to the first round of claimants eligible for the Federal Pandemic
Unemployment Compensation  supplemental benefits.
“We are extremely excited to begin paying these important funds without interruption to continuing
claimants with eligible weeks,” said DEW Executive Director Dan Ellzey. “Our agency has only received
the very first of the guidance from the US Department of Labor (USDOL), and there is still a great deal of
work to be done to study and implement these complex programs, but we are happy to begin the
process and support South Carolinians during this difficult time. We will communicate with claimants to
help them navigate new deadlines and expectations.”
Starting with claim week ending Jan.  2, 2021, claimants who are eligible to receive at least $1 of an
unemployment program will also receive an additional $300 on top of their weekly benefit amount. This
supplemental FPUC payment, made available by the recent passing of the Continued Assistance for
Unemployed Workers Act, will be provided to eligible claimants through claim week ending March 13,
2021.
The agency was able to begin this first phase of the Continued Assistance for Unemployed Workers Act
so quickly because:
• US DOL made FPUC money available to states over the weekend.
• The additional benefits were paid overnight only to individuals on a continued claim who have
not exhausted their eligible weeks. This is the first group of claimants who will receive these
benefits.
• Eligible claimants will begin to receive benefits for the claim week ending January 2, 2021. There
are not prior weeks of $300 available through this program.
• Individuals receiving the $300 have already been processed through the agency’s enhanced
security system and identification process.
• This addition could be programmed into the system in a way that was very similar to the $600
FPUC program that was built into the system in 2020.
• DEW received US DOL guidance to proceed with this phase of the act.
DEW is continuing to work through the guidance as it is issued from USDOL and will implement the
various programs in phases as quickly as possible.