On Monday, Governor DeWine announced all unemployed Ohioans will be required to complete work search activities in order to remain eligible for unemployment compensation benefits. Due to the coronavirus pandemic and a temporary change in federal law these work search requirements have been waived for Ohioans who first went on unemployment between March and December of 2020.

Activities that unemployed Ohioans must perform on a weekly basis to receive unemployment benefits include applying for employment, submitting a resume to an employer, attending a job fair, interviewing for suitable employment, or contacting a hiring hall. In addition, the individual must also register with the OhioMeansJobs website and document their work search activities.

More information on all work search activities and other requirements can be found here.

As vaccines have become more wildely available and coronavirus restrictions have be eased, Ohio employers are seeking to fill available jobs, but often times have no one applying for those positions. Here, the decision to reinstate the work search requirements will help ameliorate this workforce shortage that countless employers across Ohio are facing by increasing the number of individuals who are looking for employment.

In addition to helping address workforce issues, the decision to reinstate work search requirements for individuals who applied for unemployment prior to December 6, 2020 will create more uniformity in Ohio’s unemployment system since now all unemployed Ohioans will have to complete work search requirements. Whereas, before only those who filed new applications since early December were required to perform job searching activities.