UPDATE: Employment commissioner says no benefits to Virginians who claim COVID concerns

Virginians filing for unemployment has put an unprecedented strain on state coffers to meet demands for weeks of assistance during the coronavirus shutdown.

At a recent Senate Finance Committee tele-meeting Senator Tommy Normant noted he has heard from employers that select workers could potentially earn more by staying at home.

“The employer’s getting the push back and when he mentions about the responsibility to come to work the explanation is ‘we are still concerned because of the pandemic situation,” Normant said.

Employment Commissioner Ellen Marie Hess said a Virginia resident has to show good cause to continue receiving unemployment pay and COVID concerns would not qualify.

The agency has also created a portal that employers can use to notify the state that they are ready to call employees back to work.

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