Today, Pennsylvania Department of Labor & Industry (L&I) Acting Secretary Jennifer Berrier announced that payments for the Pandemic Emergency Unemployment Compensation (PEUC) program in the new federal CARES Act extension will resume the week of January 24.

"Since receiving the information we needed from the federal Department of Labor two weeks ago, L&I has worked as quickly as possible to update our processing system so PEUC claimants can resume filing for benefits," said Berrier. "We know that more than 100,000 Pennsylvanians were actively receiving PEUC when the program ended in December. Our team has worked tirelessly so we can begin issuing payments to the out-of-work claimants and their families who need them during this global pandemic."

Important PEUC program extension information for claimants follows.

1. You can file for the additional 11 claim weeks during your biweekly cycle beginning Sunday, January 24.
2. If you had some of your original 13 weeks left over on December 26, you will also receive the additional 11 weeks on Sunday.
3. If you were being paid on the Pennsylvania's Extended Benefits (EB) program before December 26, 2020, you MUST complete your EB benefits before the additional 11 weeks of PEUC can be added to your claim.
4. You will automatically receive the extra $300 weekly Federal Pandemic Unemployment Compensation (FPUC) – you do not need to take any action to get this boost.

PEUC provides additional claim weeks to workers who have exhausted their regular Unemployment Compensation (UC) benefits. Claimants are automatically enrolled in PEUC after they have reached their maximum claim weeks for UC. More information about the program is available here.

Yesterday, L&I announced it was issuing extended Pandemic Unemployment Assistance, or PUA, benefit payments. 

Claimants who have questions about their enrollment in the CARES Act extension programs or who have issues with their claims should send an email to UC staff and include their first and last name as it appears on the claim and the last four digits of their Social Security number.

1. PEUC or FPUC questions should be emailed to uchelp@pa.gov
2. PUA questions should be emailed to ucpua@pa.gov

L&I Resources and Links for Claimants

1. Important L&I Updates Related to COVID-19 Unemployment Programs
2. Federal CARES Act 
3. Report Unemployment Fraud and Identity Theft 
4. 2020 Tax Forms for Claimants