Committee Work

In a letter to the Director of the DC Department of Employment Services, I emphasized that all claimants need to be alerted in plain language how the Biden Rescue Plan will benefit them, how long it will take to implement changes, and what problems they may encounter and what they can do to resolve them. You can read the letter here.

The federal American Rescue Plan extended four unemployment programs. Individuals receiving either PUA or PEUC benefits will NOT have to reapply to continue to receive their benefits. 

The DC Department of Employment Services is still making updates to the system to reflect the new federal benefit changes. Individuals should keep filing and certifying online every week. The new benefits will extend from March 14 through September 6. The plan also provides an additional $300 per week to anyone receiving benefits March 14 through September 4.

On March 11th, Councilmember Elissa Silverman, chair of the DC Council's Labor and Workforce Development Committee, sent a letter highlighting four ways for the District to resolve unemployment insurance issues.  The letter, to the Department of Employment Services Director Unique Morris-Hughes, comes after the Department's performance oversight hearing, where councilmembers heard from dozens of witnesses who spent hours and hours calling and emailing the Department but could not get issues resolved.

***UPDATED 4/21 WITH NEW BUDGET HEARING DATES***

In Spring 2021, the Committee on Labor and Workforce Development will hold hearings on the performance of the agencies within its jurisdiction and and the proposed FY2022 budgets of those agencies. The schedule is below and may be found online at https://dccouncil.gov/2020-2021-performance-oversight-fy-2022-budget-schedules/. We welcome testimony from the public and have several ways to submit testimony. Instructions for testifying follow. **Please note the schedule is subject to change.** Additionally, agencies’ responses to the Committee’s written pre-performance hearing questions are posted here: https://dccouncil.gov/labor-and-workforce-development-5/

On Friday, January 22, 2021, at 10:00 a.m., Councilmember Elissa Silverman, Chairperson of the Committee on Labor and Workforce Development, will hold a roundtable on the District’s universal paid family leave program. The Universal Paid Leave Amendment Act of 2016 (L21-264) established a paid leave system to provide partial wage replacement for District workers in need of leave from work due to serious family illness, personal medical needs, or to care for a new child.  The universal paid leave program began providing benefits to eligible workers on July 1, 2020. At this roundtable, the Committee will hear testimony concerning the first six months of the program. See further information at the full roundtable notice here.

Councilmember Elissa Silverman, Chairperson of the Committee on Labor and Workforce Development, announces a public oversight roundtable before the Committee on the District’s unemployment compensation program. The roundtable will consider the challenges District workers continue to face in applying for unemployment insurance benefits under expanded programs available during the COVID-19 pandemic. This notice has been revised to reflect the addition of a second date, December 16, 2020 at 10:00am, when the Department of Employment Services (DOES) is expected to testify.

The full text of the letter sent by Councilmember Elissa Silverman to DOES, which includes advance questions for this additional Oversight Roundtable, can be found here. 

The hearing will be broadcast live on DC Cable Channel 13 and online at www.dccouncil.us.

So, you need to apply for unemployment in DC as a freelancer or independent contractor…

Luckily, DC freelancer Lisa Kaneff has put together this excellent resource to guide freelancers through the process of applying for the federal Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (PUA) program. This easy-to-read blog post will walk readers through what the program does, who's eligible, and how to apply. It also includes several helpful tips for navigating the system with the least amount of headache. 

It is important to note, however, that PUA expires at the end of this year. We are hopeful that the Biden Administration will extend PUA or put another aid program in place for our workers not served by traditional Unemployment Insurance, and will share more information if that happens as soon as it becomes available.

Click here to read the full post.

During Council Period 23 (CP23), the Committee focused its work as always on jobs, workers’ rights, and District government personnel policy. The second half of the period was largely dominated by the COVID-19 (novel coronavirus) pandemic that devastated the economy, producing massive job loss and introducing significant workplace health and safety issues. The impacts of these trends wove throughout the Committee work in the latter part of the period.

This report includes a detailed summary of the Committee's activities in CP23, as well as a list of policy recommendations made, and enacted legislation and measures approved in committee. 

Click here to download the full report.

On Thursday, November 19, at 10:00am, the Committee on Labor and Workforce Development will hold an Additional Meeting on the following measures:

1. B23-90 Commission on Poverty in the District of Columbia Establishment Act of 2020
2. B23-494 Ban on Non-Compete Agreements Amendment Act of 2020
3. B23-985 Unemployment Benefits Extension Amendment Act of 2020
4. Council Period 23 Report of the Activities of the Committee on Labor and Workforce Development

On Wednesday, December 9 at 9:00am, Councilmember Elissa Silverman, Chairperson of the Committee on Labor and Workforce Development, will hold a public oversight roundtable before the Committee on the District’s unemployment compensation program. The roundtable will consider the challenges District workers continue to face in applying for unemployment insurance benefits under expanded programs available during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Tune in via DC Cable Channel 13 or online at www.dccouncil.us.

Click here for the Official Hearing Notice and here for the Final Agenda and Witness List.