Approximately 40,000 civilian federal workers in Colorado furloughed as a result of the shutdown of the federal government will likely be eligible for unemployment benefits while they are out of work, the Colorado Department of Labor and Employment said Wednesday.
on its website related to furloughs, including what is required to file a claim.
Furloughed federal workers should file their claims online at www.coloradoui.gov.
There is a mandatory one-week waiting period before a claim is activated and workers may not file their claim until their last day of work.
The agency said that the federal government does not report federal civilian wages to it. Rather, the state agency requests the civilian employees federal wages after they file for unemployment.
The claims of the civilian employees last for one year. Most claims have approximately six months of benefits. After the benefit-year-and-end date, Colorado cannot pay any more unemployment benefits, even if there is money left on the claim.
Unlike most claimants, the federal workers are “job attached” which means they will not be required to conduct a job search during their furlough or register with a workforce center.
Current claimants who are concerned about the federal shutdown affecting payment of their unemployment benefits need not worry. All unemployment benefits will continue to be paid regardless of the government shutdown.
Affected contractors or suppliers for the federal government can also file for regular unemployment benefits.
Howard Pankratz: 303-954-1939, hpankratz@denverpost.com or twitter.com/howardpankratz
