Governor Greg Abbott on Monday informed the U.S. Department of Labor that Texas will opt out of federal pandemic unemployment compensation on June 26, 2021. This includes the $300 weekly unemployment supplement from the Federal Pandemic Unemployment Compensation program.
“The Texas economy is booming and employers are hiring in communities throughout the state,” said Governor Abbott. “According to the Texas Workforce Commission, the number of job openings in Texas is almost identical to the number of Texans who are receiving unemployment benefits. That assessment does not include the voluminous jobs that typically are not listed, like construction and restaurant jobs. In fact, there are nearly 60 percent more jobs open (and listed) in Texas today than there was in February 2020, the month before the Pandemic hit Texas.”
The current job openings are good paying jobs, Abbott said. According to the Texas Workforce Commission, nearly 45 percent of posted jobs offer wages greater than $15.50 per hour. Approximately 76 percent pay more than $11.50 per hour. Only 2 percent of posted jobs pay around the minimum wage.
“At this stage of opening the state 100 percent, the focus must be on helping unemployed Texans connect with the more than a million job openings, rather than paying unemployment benefits to remain off the employment rolls,” the governor said.
A high level of fraudulent unemployment claims is also cited as a reason for Abbott’s decision. Nearly 18 percent of all unemployment claims for during the pandemic are confirmed or suspected to be fraudulent, the Texas Workforce Commission reports. That totals more than 800,000 claims, worth as much as $10.4 billion.
The federal benefits will officially expire as of June 26, 2021.
