In the aftermath of confusion around COVID-19 layoffs, Michigan’s director of the Unemployment Insurance Agency (UIA) says she wants to gain back the public’s trust through openness.
"We need to have that transparency, that level of pulling back the curtain and saying, here's what we're doing, said UIA director Julia Dale. "We recognize that maybe we've not done things right in the past, but you have our commitment to doing things better going forward."
The software tasked with processing the influx of unemployment claims in the early days of the pandemic at the UIA office was over a decade old and overwhelmed by the demand.
There was confusion, delays, and overpayments. At one point during the pandemic, the office asked people who were overpaid benefits to pay the state back. Additionally, the agency has gone through 11 directors in 11 years.
The UIA has put a hold on all re-payment activity and anyone who’s eligible will receive a waiver to cancel having to pay the state back benefits they received.
"I think it's important to recognize, too, that the individuals don't need to apply for the waiver. That's something that we are proactively doing as an agency," said Dale.
Dale added that not everyone might be eligible for a waiver and some Michiganders may have to pay back the state for receiving overpayments. It’s unclear when that would happen.
According to Dale, her agency is still completing claims from 2021.
