Whitmer orders temporary expansions on unemployment benefits during coronavirus crisis

LANSING, Mich. (FOX 2) - A new Executive Order by Gov. Gretchen Whitmer meant to clarify the expansion of eligibility for unemployment benefits during the COVID-19 crisis, was signed Wednesday.  

According to a release, the signed Executive Order 2020-24:  

• Suspends the requirement for an individual seeking unemployment to request a registration and work search waiver from their employer.  
• Allows anyone with an active unemployment claim to receive up to a six-week benefit extension. 
• Expands cost-sharing with employers. 

Any benefit paid to a claimant that is laid off or placed on a leave of absence will not be charged to the employer’s accounts, but instead will be pooled and assumed by the Nonchargeable Benefits Component of employer accounts.

Employers who unlawfully misclassify their workers and have underpaid their unemployment tax do not get the benefit of this enhanced cost-sharing. 

“These are challenging times that all Michiganders are facing, and no one should be worried about how to make ends meet if they cannot work because of self-isolation or self-quarantine in response to contracting the coronavirus,” said Governor Whitmer. “I will continue to take action that protects public health, while also ensuring that working families have the support they need during these hard times.” 

Executive Order 2020-24 takes the place of Executive Order 2020-10.  Read it in full, below.

Patients with confirmed infection have reportedly had mild to severe respiratory illness with symptoms of:  

• Fever   
• Cough   
• Shortness of breath