TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – Florida has lifted a requirement that people qualifying for unemployment benefits must wait a week before their first checks are sent.
With jobless claims surging as businesses have closed or scaled back because of the novel coronavirus, state Department of Economic Opportunity Executive Director Ken Lawson on Tuesday signed an order that temporarily waives the one-week waiting period before people can start to collect benefits.
Lawson noted in the order that “strict compliance” with the rule “would prevent, hinder, or delay necessary action in coping with the emergency.” The waiting period had been among several issues raised by Democrats and labor leaders, who have complained about the unemployment-compensation