Eligibility for jobless benefits cut from 79 weeks to 72 in Minnesota

Updated: October 22, 2009 - 8:30 PM

112
comments
resize text
print
buy reprints

Tweet
share

email
Email share

your name

your email

recipients email

+ add a comment add a comment

The U.S. Department of Labor certified this week that laid-off Minnesotans are no longer eligible to collect up to 79 weeks of unemployment checks. Beginning Nov. 15, the maximum period will be cut to 72 weeks.

The change affects 3,500 unemployment recipients who are in their final seven weeks of benefits, state officials said.

The cut is due to the recent drop in the state's unemployment rate to 7.3 percent in September from 8 percent in August. Minnesota's average three-month average unemployment rate is now 7.8 percent, which means that the state no longer qualifies for the final tier of federal unemployment benefit extensions. States need a three-month average of 8 percent to qualify.

The change could ultimately affect about 170,000 people requesting unemployment insurance each week. Congress is working on federal unemployment extensions, however.

Unemployment benefits typically go for 26 weeks in Minnesota up to a maximum of $585 per week, but various state and federal extensions had pushed the maximum duration for eligible clients to 79 weeks.

DEE DEPass