Unemployment Insurance-Who is going to pay?
May 6 @ 9:00 am - 10:00 am
Healey Administration Agrees to UI Deal to Resolve $2.5B Mistake:
Employers Will Pay
Join us Tuesday, May 6th via Zoom 9:00-10:00 a.m. to learn more:
The looming $2.5 billion UI liability question that had been hanging over employers’ heads for over 18 months has been answered, with news of a deal between the state and the federal government. Under the recent agreement negotiated by the Healey Administration, employers will be required to pay back $2.1 billion over the next decade, to correct an error made during the Baker Administration when federal funds were incorrectly spent. The agreement was signed on one of the last days of the Biden administration. RAM reacted:
“It’s discouraging we have to pay for this,” RAM President Jon Hurst said of the latest settlement. “The fact that we have what is frankly a collapsing system even without this additional $2.1 billion, and adding to the fact we’re still paying the $2.7 billion from the prior administration, and now this, all for claims [related to pandemic-era mandatory shutdowns] that were really the government’s fault, not the employers’ fault, it’s a tough thing, it’s very costly.” On the plus side, Hurst said he’s hopeful “that it appears there’s some willingness to talk about reforming the system. . . . Maybe this will be a tradeoff that employers will see as worthwhile.”
RAM will continue to advocate for the state to cover some of the costs associated with this mistake and will continue to push for meaningful UI reforms this legislative session.
RAM President and CEO, Jon Hurst will be joining virtually on May 6th to help our business owners understand the ramifications of the plan that the present administration has chosen to implement.
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Jon B. Hurst, President & CEO
Jon Hurst has served as President of the Retailers Association of Massachusetts (RAM) since 1990. As CEO of the 4,000-member statewide trade association, Hurst manages the member services, education and public affairs of the organization. RAM was organized in 1918 as the Voice of Retailing in Massachusetts, and today represents stores and restaurants of all types and sizes.
