FEMA Benefits Approved For Unemployed NJ Residents Amid Pandemic

NEW JERSEY — Help is on the way for unemployed New Jersey residents who are struggling financially amid the coronavirus pandemic, state officials announced on Thursday.

The New Jersey Department of Labor and Workforce Development announced that it has begun approving Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) Lost Wages Assistance benefits for people who were unemployed between Aug. 1 and Sept. 5.

Those who qualify will receive up to six weeks of supplemental benefits at $300 per week, according to the Labor Department. Eligible claimants will receive this supplemental benefit in a lump sum of up to $1,800, Murphy said.

“While this is not the long-term relief we had hoped for from Washington, it will help struggling New Jersey families, and we welcome that,” Gov. Phil Murphy said during a news conference Thursday afternoon. “This is something, and if we can find a penny for you folks, we will get it and deliver it to you.”

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Claimants who have already certified that their unemployment is due to the coronavirus pandemic will automatically receive a lump sum payment if they are eligible later this month, Murphy said.

Those who have not told the Department of Labor why they are out of work will need to certify that their unemployment is related to the pandemic.

That can be done by visiting http://myunemployment.nj.gov, and clicking on claim status. They are also being notified by the Labor Department with instructions, Murphy said.

Murphy called this solution a “workaround,” and was critical of the federal government for not issuing a second stimulus check. He was particularly critical of President Donald Trump, who said he wouldn’t issue any new stimulus checks until after the election. He later reversed course and said he would approve a new round of $1,200 stimulus checks to Americans if they were approved by Congress.

“The fact that the president said ‘no more’ is appalling,” Murphy said. “This is important for state, county, small businesses and anyone out there who is unemployed. We’ll take the FEMA money, but that’s a workaround. What should really happen here is that $600 benefit should be extended meaningfully and done so through the normal channels.”

Murphy said he would give good grades to the federal government for what it did in the spring to stop the economic free fall as a result of the pandemic, but their efforts needed to continue and stimulus is needed at all levels.

“The clock is almost run out for the moment,” Murphy said. “So when you heard what the president said the other day, that could now be months before something about it happens. We can’t afford that.”

About 23,600 initial unemployment claims were filed last week, bringing the total number of workers who have filed for unemployment since mid-March to 1.65 million, according to numbers provided by the department. That was a decrease of about 3,500 claims filed the week before.

The Department of Labor said it has released more than $6.2 billion in benefits, including $262 million last week alone. About 96 percent of all New Jersey residents who have been deemed eligible have received payments.

See more stories about New Jersey's coronavirus recovery.