Utah to end participation in COVID-19 unemployment benefits
Nam Y. Huh/AP
and last updated 2021-05-12 11:58:57-04
SALT LAKE CITY â Gov. Spencer Cox has decided to end Utah s participation in increased federal unemployment benefits tied to the pandemic.
The governor s office said the $300 weekly stimulus payment, as well as other federal unemployment programs specifically tied to the pandemic, will end June 26. That impacts approximately 28,000 people and about $12.8 million is paid out per week. This is the natural next step in getting the state and peopleâs lives back to normal, Cox said in a statement on Wednesday. I believe in the value of work. With the nationâs lowest unemployment rate at 2.9% and plenty of good paying jobs available today, it makes sense to transition away from these extra benefits that were never intended to be permanent. The market should not be competing with government for workers.
SALT LAKE CITY Utah state workers will be expected back in their offices on Monday, May 31 unless continued teleworking has been approved. An email sent to KSL Newsradio from the office of Gov. Spencer Cox says they re still encouraged to be vigilant about good hygiene and maintaining physical distancing.
Employees and their families are also strongly encouraged to get vaccinations as a way to protect themselves against the coronavirus.
But mandates to wear masks at work will expire, the statement said. The continued use of Plexiglas shields will be up to the individual departments of state government.
Thousands of state workers have been telecommuting, doing their jobs from home, during the months of the COVID-19 pandemic. The Utah Department of Workforce Services, for example, employs hundreds of call center workers, and many of them could continue their jobs from home. Deputy Director Nate McDonald said they want to put people where they re most efficient.
Utah s labor and unemployment numbers explained
Low unemployment rate means many businesses are struggling to hire
and last updated 2021-05-04 00:44:37-04
SALT LAKE CITY â Utahâs unemployment is tied for the lowest in the nation at 2.9 percent.
Nebraska, South Dakota and Vermont are the only other states with a rate as low.
But that number does not paint a perfect picture.
According to the Utah Department of Workforce Services, compared to this time last year, Utahâs rate of job growth is less than one percent.
That indicates job growth is not keeping up with the increase of people in the labor market and could artificially deflate Utahâs unemployment numbers.
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Roughly 46,000 Utahns are unemployed and looking for work, but there are about 80,000 job openings, according to data from the Utah Department of Workforce Services.
Justin Thomas’ company, Point 2 Point Landscaping, took a major hit during the pandemic. He operates across the Wasatch Front. Last March, business dried up, he had to let employees go and could no longer afford to pay for office space.
As Utah’s economy approaches pre-pandemic levels, he’s also had a return to form. But he still faces a major setback he can’t find the workers he needs.
Thomas said he has over 80 customers, but only two employees and is often running back and forth between jobs to fill in.
Wayne Niederhauser, Utah's new homelessness coordinator, says the state doesn't need additional shelter space, so long as it can help people transition into permanent housing more quickly.