The number of people seeking help with lost wages from Florence has surpassed Matthew
Many of those same people, almost 8,000, have also applied for disaster unemployment assistance, an additional benefit for those left without wages because of the storm.
That's nearly four times the number of people who requested disaster unemployment assistance (DUA) after Hurricane Matthew in 2016, said
And the number is expected keep climbing "every day over the next couple of months," he said as more people learn about the benefit and are able to submit online applications or make their way to an NC Works office to file a claim.
For many in
It would be "a great help" if I get something out of this, Johnson said Monday as she filled out unemployment paperwork, " 'cause my check was short. ... The electric bill doesn't stop growing just because there was a storm.
"Sometimes you gotta rob Peter to pay Paul, so I guess Paul is going to get paid this time."
Metro areas hurt worse
The state has already paid out more than
The claims have been higher this time because of the areas affected by the storm, said
Hurricane Florence had a much larger impact on metropolitan areas, such as
"We got the sense that as the storm sat on those areas with a much higher labor market that we were going to be dealing with much greater claims numbers."
So far the claims have borne out their thinking with the majority coming from
Disaster unemployment assistance is available to people who live in one of the 28 counties approved for federal disaster and is meant to help residents who were -- or are still -- unable to work because of flooded roads, power outages and building damage.
It also helps those who are ineligible for standard unemployment insurance recoup some of those lost wages from the storm. People may not be eligible for regular unemployment benefits because they've already used their 12-week allotment for the year or because they haven't been in their job long enough to qualify for benefits.
Workers, however, must apply for standard unemployment as well as disaster unemployment assistance. They can do so simultaneously. Standard unemployment benefits pay up to
'I didn't even know you could do this'
The
In
Many of the
Because of its damaged office, NC Works is sending its employees out to large companies that had to close during the storm.
On Monday, NC Works employees went to
"It would be very hard for (the company) to make up four days of lost wages," while also missing four days of production, said
Johnson, who had to use vacation time to cover some of the days he missed during and after the storm, was filing a claim on Monday along with dozens of his fellow employees.
"People on salary don't have to worry" about missing work like this, Shaw said. "This is not going to cover everything I bet."
How to apply for Disaster Unemployment Assistance
Workers are only eligible for disaster unemployment benefits if they're in one of the 28 counties in eastern
Eligible counties are:
To be eligible for any week of DUA, an individual must meet one or more of these conditions as a direct result of a major disaster
1. No longer have a job
2. Unable to reach their place of employment
3. Scheduled to start work but unable to reach the job
4. Become the bread-winner or major support of family because of disaster-related death of the head of household
5. Cannot work because of injury directly caused by the declared disaster
An application must be filed within 30 days after DUA is made available in a county that has been declared eligible for disaster benefits.
To apply for assistance you should call toll free at 1-866-795-8877 or apply at des.nc.gov.
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