PA To Restart Work Search Requirement For Unemployment Benefits

PENNSYLVANIA — Getting unemployment? You'll have to prove you're looking for a job come July. That's when the state will resume work search requirements for people receiving unemployment compensation.

Jennifer Berrier, the state's acting labor and industry secretary, confirmed in a statement that the requirement will resume July 18. She also said that a work registration requirement will resume in September. The requirements were waived by Gov. Tom Wolf last year due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Those receiving unemployment are also required to accept an offer of suitable work, Berrier said. "Individuals are also required to keep a log of their work search activities, which is subject to audit," according to information from the Department of Labor & Industry.

The work search requirement will restart the week of July 11, with people to start certifying on July 18 that they have looked for work during the previous week.

Pennsylvania lawmakers had been pushing for the change, proposing legislation to reinstate the requirement.

"The work search requirements are part of existing law," state Rep. Jim Cox of Berks County, who sponsored the legislation, said recently.

"The administration waived these requirements during the pandemic. We simply want them to be reinstated now that businesses are reopening and especially since many employers are reporting they are having trouble finding workers."

“As more Pennsylvanians become vaccinated and our case count continues to decline, workers can more safely return to the workforce,” Berrier said.

Eligible work search activities are, according to the state:

• Attending a job fair.
• Searching positions posted on the PA CareerLink system or internet job banks.
• Creating or posting a résumé in the PA CareerLink system or posting a résumé in other résumé-posting services.
• Contacting colleagues, former co-workers or other individuals in similar professions or occupations to make known your availability for employment or obtain information about available positions, prospective employers or other employment opportunities.
• Using an employment agency, employment registry or school placement service.
• Taking a civil service test or other pre-employment test.
• Participating in a program or activity offered through the PA CareerLink system. If you live outside of Pennsylvania, you may participate in these types of activities offered by your state employment service.