New guidance from the Texas Workforce commission makes it harder to file for unemployment benefits during the pandemic. Fear of the virus or feeling ill without being tested will not qualify a person for benefits.
You can file of you or a family member have a diagnosis and have not recovered.
Attorney David Wylie, president of the Texas employment lawyers association believes the drive to reopen the Texas is not being led by health officials, but out of business concerns.
He says the guidance should address those who have symptoms or who think they've been exposed. "My concern as a lawyer who advises workers is how the TWC is advising those people who a legitimate and specific concern about returning to work and who have not yet been tested."He says the drive to open the state is not being led by health officials, but rather out of business concerns. "I am worried about whether a motivating factor here is the desire to disincentive people from staying home by taking away the availability of unemployment benefits. Now is not the time to financially incentivize such people to get back out into their communities - among their coworkers, colleagues, and customers. Doing so is antithetical to the stated goal of protecting the health and safety of all Texans. Without wide-spread availability of testing, this focus on diagnosis and positive tests is insufficient guidance."The governor says Texans can also continue to receive benefits if are or live with someone 65 or older, have been diagnosed or live with someone who has been diagnosed and not recovered, are quarantined due to exposure or are taking care of a child without access to childcare. Abbott says each claim will be evaluated. He says the state's top priority is protecting the health and safety of all Texans.