Unemployment insurance waiting week to be reinstated in Montana

From Montana Department of Labor and Industry

HELENA — The Montana Department of Labor and Industry announced Friday that the one-week waiting period for Unemployment Insurance (UI) claimants would be reinstated effective Sunday.

Beginning the UI week ending Feb. 6, new claims filed will be subject to the non-payable one-week waiting period. This change will not impact existing claims. Only one waiting week is served per benefit year.

In March 2020, at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, Montana waived the UI waiting week. Eliminating the waiting week was done in response to a Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security — CARES — Act provision that provided 100 percent federal funding to states to finance the first week of benefits. That provision has since been removed.

The rule change to reinstate the regular waiting week has been published, with an effective date of Sunday. The notice of this rule change is available here: http://uid.dli.mt.gov/Portals/55/Documents/news/24-11-369adp-arm.pdf?ver=2021-01-22-091319-853 .

DLI continues to encourage anyone who believes they may be eligible for UI to file a claim online at http://MontanaWorks.gov or at http://mtpua.mt.gov for people who fall under the PUA eligibility guidelines. Claimants with technical, eligibility, or benefits questions are encouraged to view the COVID-19 resource website at http://dli.mt.gov/covid-19 . A variety of information for both Montana workers and employers are available, in addition to resources to help claimants navigate the unemployment process.