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Furloughed federal workers file unemployment through the state.

Delaware Public Media

During a shutdown of the federal government, furloughed federal employees who qualify for Unemployment Compensation receive their benefits through state agencies.

Delaware’s Department of Labor started taking unemployment claims for federal employees late last week, and as of Thursday morning, there have been 70 such claimants.

Labor Dept. Unemployment Insurance Administrator Caroline Nasser says claims are coming in from a litany of agencies.

“We have claims coming from the Department of Agriculture, Department of Interior, Federal Aviation Administration,” said Nasser. “We have several claims from the Department of Treasury, IRS. That’s where we’re seeing most of our claims come from.”

But Essential federal employees, like TSA workers, who are continuing to work do not qualify for unemployment despite not being paid during the shutdown.

Nasser says the state determines the amount of compensation for those who qualify based on the number of wages an employee would have made during the period of unemployment.

The maximum weekly benefit amount in Delaware is 330 dollars per week for up to 26 weeks, and Nasser says she expects most will qualify for that amount.

Nasser reminds federal workers they require additional paperwork to file their claims.

“What they do need to supply to us as a federal employee, there’s a set of forms called an SF-8 and an SF-50,” she said. “We need both those forms which verify their wages in order to process the claim.”

Nasser says her office will accept claims for federal employees for the duration of the government shutdown, now well into its fourth week.