SC green-lights unemployment pay for jobless contractors, gig workers, self-employed
COLUMBIA, SC -- Gig workers, self-employed workers, contractors and other South Carolinians will soon begin receiving emergency unemployment benefits, the Department of Employment and Workforce announced Friday.
DEW will begin accepting applications for the Pandemic Unemployment Assistance program as of April 25, nearly a month after the CARES Act was signed into law on March 27. The PUA program extends unemployment benefits to people who normally wouldnt qualify for state unemployment benefits, such as gig workers and 1099 employees.
Through PUA, laid off workers will receive the a portion of South Carolinas weekly benefit (capped at $326 per week), plus the $600 per week offered to claimants through CARES Act funding. The program covers claims from the week ending Feb. 8 to the week ending Dec. 26.
DEW encouraged South Carolinians who believed they qualified for any of the federal assistance to apple, even before federal funds started flowing into the states coffers. PUA-eligible claimants who filed claims within the designated time period will not need to file another a claim in order to access benefits, according to DEW.
Read more: https://www.heraldonline.com/news/state/south-carolina/article242271361.html
(Rock Hill Herald)