<div class="RichTextArticleBody"> <div class="RichTextArticleBody-body"><p>The state of Michigan has provided $1.37 billion in unemployment benefits to 820,000 workers affected by the COVID-19 health crisis, the Michigan Unemployment Agency (UIA) announced Thursday.</p><p>RELATED: <span class="Enhancement"> <span class="Enhancement-item">More than 134K Michigan residents filed for unemployment last week</span> </span> </p><p>Since March 15, more than one million Michiganders have filed for unemployment, with more than 134,000 workers filing claims recently in mid-April, according to the U.S. Department of Labor.</p><p>“We are committed to providing this emergency financial assistance to Michigan workers as quickly as possible, but we know we still have a lot of work left to do to get every dollar in benefits to the working families that need it most,” said Michigan Dept. of Labor and Economic Opportunity Director Jeff Donofrio. “We’re working around the clock to add capacity to the system so that we can continue to process all claims during this historic demand for benefits.” </p><p>The state says that a majority of workers who still haven't received benefits will receive payments shortly after completing the federal requirements <span class="Enhancement"> <span class="Enhancement-item">to certify their claim</span> </span> two weeks after filing. </p><p>In response to the increased demand for unemployment benefits, the UIA has extended its call center hours, while also adding more customer facing staff. </p><p>If you still need to file a claim, the state says the easiest way is to go online to <span class="Enhancement"> <span class="Enhancement-item">michigan.go/UIA</span> </span> .</p><p>Here's a breakdown of unemployment claims in the state over the last several weeks. </p><p>Week-Ending April 18: 134,119</p><p>Week-Ending April 11: 222,207</p><p>Week-Ending April 4: 388,554</p><p>Week-Ending March 28: 304,335</p><p>Week-Ending March 21: 128,806</p><p>Five Week Total: 1,178,021</p><p></p><p>
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