John Locher / AP
People wait in line for help with unemployment benefits at the One-Stop Career Center, Tuesday, March 17, 2020, in Las Vegas.
Thursday, May 14, 2020 | 6:25 p.m.
Independent contractors in Nevada will be eligible to apply for unemployment benefits beginning Saturday, the Nevada Department of Employment, Training & Rehabilitation announced Thursday.
Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (PUA) payments are expected to begin on May 23, said Heather Korbulic, the department’s director.
Nevadans who qualify for the benefits can file their claims online at employnv.gov, she said. The department is expecting at least 70,000 claims, she said.
A call center specifically dedicated to PUA-related claims will go live on Saturday and can be reached at 800-603-9861, Korbulic said. Before applying, applicants are asked to review PUA’s background material be available at detr.nv.gov/pua.
Compensation will be backdated to Jan. 27.
The payments will help independent workers “and others who are historically unable to qualify for traditional unemployment insurance benefits,” such as those who are self-employed or gig workers, Korbulic said.
Those beneficiaries include: those who don’t report their wages to the standard unemployment insurance; those who have not earned enough hours for standard benefits due to the coronavirus pandemic, and those unemployed who were about to begin a job but couldn’t because of COVID-19, she said.
Applicants must have prior earnings in Nevada or a prior job offer to work in the state and not be eligible for standard unemployment insurance, Korbulic said. They will need to present W-2 or 1099 tax forms, “pay stubs, bank receipts, ledgers, invoices and billing statements.”
Benefits will range from $181 to $469 a week, plus the additional weekly payments of $600 provided through the Federal Pandemic Unemployment Compensation program, officials said.
PUA recipients “must be willing and able to accept employment” to qualify for the benefits, but additional guidelines to address those employees’ concerns are forthcoming, she said.
Unemployment benefits in the state on Wednesday were extended 13 weeks till the end of December as Nevada’s unemployment figures increased to about 20%, according to the Associated Press.
