Employers and employees alike have questions.  Please see the following information we’ve obtained from the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services to help answer questions.

Many Ohio employers are being forced to shutdown or to layoff employees due to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. The Governor signed an executive order earlier this week which made several changes to Ohio’s unemployment law to enable employees who do not have paid leave benefits to access unemployment benefits during this period of emergency. The executive order also helps employers with unemployment reporting and payments. Here are some of the major changes:

• Individuals quarantined by a doctor or by their employer will be considered unemployed and will be eligible for unemployment benefits.
• Employees imposing self-quarantine who are not showing symptoms will not be, in most cases, eligible for unemployment benefits.
• Claimants must meet the weekly requirements that they are able and available for work, however the requirement that they actively search for work while receiving benefits has been waived. Also, those currently receiving unemployment benefits will not be asked to show they are seeking work during this period.
• Ohio’s current one-week waiting period before an individual can receive unemployment benefits has been waived.
• Employer penalties for late reporting and payments for the next quarter have been waived to assist with the lack of staff availability in the next reporting period.

How to apply for unemployment benefits

Individuals can apply for unemployment online 24 hours a day, seven days a week at unemployment.ohio.gov. It is also possible to file by phone at (877) OHIO-JOB, Monday through Friday 8am to 5pm.

To speed up the processing of benefits, Ohio employers should provide the following mass-layoff number 2000180 and a link the Ohio Department of Job & Family Services Instructional Sheet (https://www.odjfs.state.oh.us/forms/num/JFS00671) to their employees.

How does this affect employers?

COVID-19-affected contributory employers will receive regular monthly charge statements, but these charges will be charged to the mutual account and not the employer’s account.

Please continue to check for updates on our website or on the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services website at unemployment.ohio.gov.