Self-employed and gig workers in Utah can get unemployment

Utah residents who are self-employed or work in the gig industry can file for unemployment benefits amid the coronavirus outbreak, state officials announced Wednesday.

The filing opportunity for people who work in jobs such as hair stylists or rideshare drivers stems from the $2.2 trillion federal package to help businesses, workers and the health care system staggered by the pandemic, said Kevin Burt, unemployment insurance director at the Utah Department of Workforce Services.

People can’t apply for the program and traditional unemployment, said Burt, urging people to read the rules carefully to choose which fits theor situation.

The new program is designed to help people who don’t have the 15-month job history needed to qualify for typical unemployment benefits.

More than 81,000 people in Utah have filed jobless claims in the past three weeks in an unprecedented spike that mirrors nationwide trends. Updated unemployment figures for Utah are scheduled to be released Thursday.

In other developments:

— The state reported its 20th death involving COVID-19, a Salt Lake County man around 60 who had underlying health conditions and died in a hospital. Utah has about 2,500 virus cases and has tested nearly 47,000 people, state figures show.

State health officials believe about 15% of the infected people contracted the virus from community spread while 70% had direct contact with someone who was sick, state epidemiologist Angela Dunn said. About 11% of the cases involved travel and 4% involved health care workers.

— Utah is launching a state grant fund to help day care centers that remain open during the pandemic. About 38% of licensed day care centers in the state have closed and those still open are struggling, said Tracy Gruber, executive director of the Utah Office of Child Care. The funds can be used to pay rent, salaries, buy supplies and adapt to meet new safety standards.

The goal is to help keep the centers open and to be ready when people go back to work, Gruber said.