Cooper reinstates stricter rules for NC unemployment, seeks incentives for job seekers
A day after Republican lawmakers proposed paying unemployed North Carolinians as much as $1,500 to get off unemployment and obtain a job, Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper has issued a new executive order on unemployment.
Part of his new order Friday brings back pre-pandemic requirements for people seeking unemployment benefits. Soon, anyone who seeks benefits will have to prove they are looking for a job. Many unemployed people in the state already must follow those rules, due to a different order Cooper signed in March. The order Cooper issued Friday will apply it to everyone who is unemployed as of June 6.
“As our state emerges from the pandemic, we want to help people safely return to work as soon as possible,” Cooper said in a statement. “Reinstating the work search guidelines will help connect claimants with employers, resources and tools to help them return to the workforce.”
But the order is a carrot-and-stick approach, and it doesn’t just have stricter rules for jobless North Carolinians. It also has the potential promise of incentives to help people return to work. It’s along the lines of the bill that Republican lawmakers put forth this week to give unemployed people up to $1,500 if they can find and keep a job this summer.
A Cooper spokeswoman told The News & Observer on Thursday that the governor is open to the GOP-backed idea of giving people on unemployment a taxpayer-funded signing bonus to go back to work. On Friday, Cooper ordered the N.C. Department of Commerce, which runs the unemployment office, to look into opportunities to use federal funds “to establish a reemployment incentive program for jobless workers who find and maintain employment.”
The bill lawmakers introduced Thursday would give the Commerce Department similar instructions. Cooper’s executive order could speed up the process by getting the Commerce Department started now, instead of waiting on the legislative process, which which would have taken at least a few days next week, if not longer.
Why does speed matter?
Speeding up the process could help workers, especially if the legislature does pass its signing bonus plan, because the bill’s current language is time-sensitive.
If the bill passes into law as-is, it would give $1,500 to unemployed people who get a job by June 1. People who get a job between June 2 and July 1 would get $800.
Is that the only option?
Not necessarily.
It’s also possible the Commerce Department could look into back-to-work incentives beyond cash payments to people currently on unemployment.
Some Democratic lawmakers said many people who haven’t returned to work are parents who wouldn’t be able to afford daycare based on what salaries are available, The N&O reported Thursday.
They suggested giving childcare subsidies to jobless parents who go back to work. That could be done in addition to — or instead of — a blanket signing bonus for all job seekers.
What’s the latest with work search rules?
Starting June 6, everyone on unemployment in North Carolina will have to create a “jobseeker” account at NCWorks.gov and show proof they have contacted at least three employers a week for a job. Otherwise they’ll lose their benefits.
That is the way the system usually works, but the pandemic changed the process.
When Cooper shut down many businesses in March 2020 to stop the spread of coronvirus, he lifted the work search requirement. Many businesses were forced to close or lay off staff, so job postings dropped dramatically. But a year later, in March 2021, businesses started reopening and vaccines were more widely available, so Cooper began putting the work search requirements back into place.
Who does the new order affect?
Probably not very many people.
Cooper’s order in March already said that people who go on unemployment starting March 14 or later have to follow the work search rules. So his order Friday expanding it to everyone by June 6 means that the only people who will be affected are those who went on unemployment before March 14 and are still unemployed on June 6.
Since the pandemic began, over 1.5 million North Carolinians have applied for unemployment. That’s a huge chunk of the state’s workforce of around 5 million people, although many were concentrated early in 2020, and unemployment filings have slowed in recent months.
Close to 1 million have been approved for benefits in total, with around 500,000 denied, and 14,000 still have their claims pending.
For more North Carolina government and politics news, listen to the Under the Dome politics podcast from The News & Observer and the NC Insider. You can find it on Pandora, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, iHeartRadio, Amazon Music, Megaphone or wherever you get your podcasts.
This story was originally published May 21, 2021 at 5:40 PM with the headline "Cooper reinstates stricter rules for NC unemployment, seeks incentives for job seekers."
