Pennsylvania Department of Labor & Industry Acting Secretary Jennifer Berrier announced Thursday that the department’s new unemployment compensation system will launch June 8.The new system – which will replace an obsolete 40-year-old mainframe legacy system – is expected to make it faster and simpler for Pennsylvanians to file claims.”The new system will be easy to use, provide access to important information and streamline the unemployment claim filing process for workers, employers, unemployment program staff and third-party administrators,” Berrier said. System will have to be shut down for weeksMoving data from one system to the other will require shutting down the unemployment compensation system for two weeks, meaning people will not be able to file claims during that time.The shutdown will impact anyone getting Pandemic Emergency Unemployment Compensation and extended benefits.Filers will still be paid for backdated claims during the transition period. New unemployment system featuresAccording to Berrier, the new UC system will have a different look and feel than the current system and is better aligned with the user interface of modern websites, making it more intuitive to use. It will also provide access to more information and self-serve options and reduce the need for claimants to contact the UC service center. Impacted programsThe following programs will transition to the new system:Unemployment Compensation (UC).Pandemic Emergency Unemployment Compensation (PEUC).Extended Benefits (EB).Shared Work or Short-Time Compensation (STC).Trade Readjustment Allowances (TRA).The federal Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (PUA) program operates on a separate system and will not be affected by the transition.New system featuresIndividuals currently filing for benefits through one of the above-listed programs will need to use the new UC system to file their weekly or biweekly claims.Additional features of the new system include:Filing a new or reopened claim.Accessing information about a claim.Filing an appeal.Checking the status of a payment.Using a dashboard to receive important messages from UC staff.Changing options such as whether communication is sent electronically or by physical mail, and whether federal income tax is withheld.According to L&I, the new UC system will provide employers with the ability to receive important information and notices via their dashboard and additional self-service options for managing their benefit information. While the current system provides notices of separations, appeal hearing dates and UC correspondence only on paper, the new system will allow employers to view this information in real-time. This will provide greater oversight, faster response time and better communication regarding changes in an employer’s information, L&I said.Helping users prepareL&I will provide user guides and hold…
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