For those who’ve been left unemployed as a result of the severe weather, the recovery is made all the more difficult – but there may be help for some. On Tuesday, the Texas Workforce Commission announced it will be accepting applications for Disaster Unemployment Assistance. Lisa Givens, the commission’s director of communications, joins the Texas Standard to talk about the program.
On how many Texas have lost jobs as a result of the storms:
“We won’t really know until we see those numbers come in through the monthly unemployment numbers, however, we are tracking these claims as of last week and we’ve received just around 2200 claims that may be related to the severe flooding.”
On what the assistance does:
“Unemployment is designed to help you get back on your feet when you’ve lost your job. And it’s temporary income – in this case, when you’re waiting for your employer to get back on their feet, or rebuild so that you can return to work.”
On what resources are available for those who will not return to work:
“The Texas Workforce Solutions offices stand ready to help those people get their lives back on track, and rebuild, but getting connected to employment again.”
While the claims are directed towards Van Zandt, Hays, and Harris Counties, you can still apply for assistance if you don’t reside in those counties. “If your business or employer [in those counties] was affected, you can still apply.”
You can listen to the full interview in the player above. Eligibility requirements and more information about the application here.
