Part-time workers lose hours, income, and benefits during pandemic

YUMA, Ariz. (KYMA, KECY)- Since the pandemic began, the unemployment rate in Yuma County has almost doubled.

The county jumped from 12% in February to almost 24% in April. The latest June report showing close to 22% unemployment.

Dave Wells, research director with the Grand Canyon Institute, has been tracking unemployment policy and data in Arizona throughout the crisis.

Wells says Arizona has the second-lowest maximum unemployment insurance benefits in the nation, coming in at $240 a week.

Even worse, an estimated 40-thousand Arizonans whose hours have been cut due to COVID-19, are ineligible for state benefits to supplement that lost income.

The CARES Act's $600 bonus helped significantly, but now that it’s been cut by $300, Wells says Arizona's unemployment benefits system must be fixed.

“So far Governor Ducey has been resistant to any changes because there’s a quick change that he could do, which would be to allow people to earn more money without losing their benefits."

Wells added, "Governor Kemp in Georgia did that. He’s allowed people to earn up to $300. In Arizona, it’s either zero or $30 depending on how much you’re earning. But [Ducey] could raise that to $300 or $150 or $200."

Wells says that will help a lot of the people who are currently dealing with reduced hours, like in the restaurant industry and elsewhere.

After 26-weeks the federal government pays out unemployment benefits.

So, Wells believes this change would have a minimal impact on Arizona's unemployment trust fund.