The Providers’ Council, on Friday, June 5, submitted testimony to the Joint Committee on Labor and Workforce Development in support of House 4743, An Act assisting non-profits to provide for COVID-19 unemployment benefits. The legislation would create an unemployment benefit fund to assist human services organizations and other nonprofits.
The Council used examples from its statewide membership that underscored the impact unemployment was having on the human services sector. These included:
- A community-based human services provider in central Massachusetts had unemployment claims of $27,775 in April 2019; due to the COVID-19 pandemic, this increased to $272,479 in April 2020 – an increase of nearly 900 percent;
- A community-based human services provider in southeastern Massachusetts had unemployment claims of $8,552 in April 2019; due to the COVID-19 pandemic, this increased to $158,722 in April 2020 – an increase of nearly 1,800 percent; and
- A community-based human services provider in eastern Massachusetts had unemployment claims of $4,864 in April 2019; due to the COVID-19 pandemic, this increased to $111,087 in April 2020 – an increase of nearly 2,200 percent.
You can also download the complete Council testimony. For more information, contact Bill Yelenak at the Council.