Ohio Brings Back Work Search Requirement For Jobless Benefits

Ohio labor officials say people collecting unemployment benefits will again have to prove they're looking for work to qualify.

Beginning May 23, those collecting unemployment will have to prove they're applying for jobs, attending a resume writing course or working on a reemployment plan at ohiomeansjobs.com.

“Now that Ohioans have had the opportunity to receive the COVID-19 vaccine and can safely return to work, it only makes sense that we restore work-search requirements for everyone,” Gov. Mike DeWine said in an emailed press release. Ohio joined many other states in waiving the work search requirement early in the pandemic.

Those exempt from the search requirement include Ohioans who have been temporarily laid off and those in approved training or school programs. There are also exemptions for people in good standing with union halls that refer members for jobs.

The Ohio Department of Job and Family Services (ODJFS) will notify unemployed Ohioans impacted by this change, according to the release.

From mid-March 2020 through Dec. 1, the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, the federal government allowed stated to waive work-search requirements for the unemployed. On Dec. 6, ODJFS resumed the requirement for new unemployment claims, while exempting existing claims.

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