Colorado may have paid $73 million in fraudulent unemployment benefits, with payments made to dead people, inmates and underage applicants, a state audit found, more than double the $30 million state labor officials had previously confirmed was improperly paid. “Despite the numerous steps that the department has taken to prevent and detect fraud, our audit […]
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Posted inBusiness, Economy, News
What’s Working: Colorado asks how much does that job pay? Some out-of-state employers don’t like it
Colorado’s law to address pay disparity for women and people of color continues to get push back from companies outside of the state. On Thursday, the Wall Street Journal detailed the issue employers have: They don’t want to publicly post pay ranges for each job opening. Certain employers with remote jobs are purposely excluding Colorado […]
Posted inBusiness, Economy, News
What’s Working: Labor shortage or meager pay? The Colorado debate has begun.
Who isn’t hiring? A number of national companies announced they need more help this week and are increasing hourly pay for new hires, including Amazon, which is looking to hire 3,000 more people in Denver at $17 an hour. McDonald’s is another, offering $13 per hour at company-owned stores, and there’s also Chipotle, which is […]
Posted inBusiness, Economy, News, Technology
What’s Working: How ID.me navigates face masks and social engineering to battle Colorado unemployment fraud
The staggering five-plus-hours wait to complete the last step for receiving unemployment benefits has been whittled down by 60% after the company tasked with verifying user identities ramped up staffing. Two hours, though, is still a long time to wait on the phone or on a computer for your turn to talk to a human. […]
Posted inBusiness, COVID, Economy, News
Unemployment fraudsters have cost Colorado at least $19.37 million
The state of Colorado has lost nearly $19.37 million to unemployment fraudsters since last year, officials from the Colorado Department of Labor and Employment said Friday. That’s up from the $6.5 million in total fraud losses the department previously reported. The department has documented $437.2 million in fraudulent claims that it has prevented from being […]
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What’s Working: Gig companies want workers back and are paying bonuses in Colorado
To rev up its workforce, Uber pledged this week to spend $250 million to boost incomes of drivers nationwide. While details on how this would roll out were slim, an Uber spokeswoman shared what it means for Denver drivers: $30.56 an hour. That’s the median hourly rate — not including tips! — for drivers who […]
Posted inBusiness, Economy, News
What’s Working: Colorado’s big BYE week for unemployment, the $10,200 tax question and our ongoing economic recovery
A year ago, Colorado was just realizing how serious the impact of pandemic safety measures were with a statewide stay-at-home order that pretty much halted in-person commerce. The week of April 5, 2020, became the worst week of unemployment the state had ever seen, with a record-setting 104,217 Coloradans filing their first jobless claim in […]
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Coloradans face hours-long delays as unemployment ID verification system is required for everyone receiving benefits
As fraud runs rampant, the state is now requiring those who haven’t been verified by the IDme tool to go ahead and do so in order to continue receiving jobless benefits.
Posted inBusiness, Economy, News
What’s Working: As exhausted Coloradans on unemployment wait for benefits, the next federal plan must pass soon to avoid delays
Not to be a drag here, but we’re down to one month before the existing federal coronavirus relief package providing extra unemployment benefits is set to end. The Continued Assistance Act, passed by federal lawmakers on Dec. 27, provided 11 weeks of extended unemployment benefits plus a bonus $300 per week until March 14 (or […]
Posted inBusiness, Economy, News
The restart of Colorado’s federal unemployment benefits has been uneven as thousands wait for their turn
Monday brought relief to more than 60,000 out-of-work Coloradans who were able to request federal benefits for the first time in five weeks — and that included a $300 weekly bonus retroactive to Dec. 27, the start of the federal COVID relief package. “I was able to request all the way back until Dec. 27,” […]