A $2 million federal grant awarded to the Michigan Unemployment Insurance Agency (UIA) will improve accuracy and timeliness in processing unemployment claims while also raising awareness among claimants to limit errors when applying for benefits.

The $2,086,034 funding under the U.S. Department of Labor’s (U.S. DOL) Tiger Teams initiative will support UIA modernization, efficiency, and outreach strategies in conjunction with the agency’s sweeping reforms, the UIA announced today.

“Workers will see direct benefits from this grant, including timely decisions, a reduction in errors, and more information on how to accurately file for benefits,” UIA Director Julia Dale said. “The changes will improve the user experience for employers, too, and build on past reforms to provide exemplary customer service.”

Here's how the grant will have a positive impact on claimants:

Improved Accuracy

Installing modern optical scanning equipment will sort, route, and scan incoming documents and automatically convert them to digital text. This is expected to reduce human error, shorten the time it takes UIA staff to manually review and index documents, and improve employer response results.

Timely Decisions

Scanning documents will allow information to be added to claimants’ files in a timelier manner. Changes will also be made to processes that will reduce the time it takes to send cases to the Michigan Office of Administrative Hearings and Rules (MOAHR), which is independent of the UIA and hears claims appeals. This will allow for quicker decisions.

Increased Awareness

The grant will also fund a redesign of the UIA’s website at Michigan.gov/UIA as well as other public-facing materials. Using simple design and plain language, the updated resources will increase engagement and make it easier for claimants to understand how to comply with requirements to receive benefits.

“We want to thank our partners at the Department of Labor for their continued support of the significant positive changes we are making throughout the agency,” Dale said. “This and other grants are having important impacts on fighting fraud, interacting with claimants, and helping employers understand how we can best serve their needs.”

The Tiger Teams grant is the fourth U.S. DOL grant to fund innovative UIA initiatives:

• $6.8 million to fund the UIA Community Connect program to provide guidance for workers from underserved groups in rural and urban areas who face barriers when filing for jobless benefits due to limited internet access or language barriers.
• $2,609,000 Integrity Grant to expand the agency’s fight against fraud by hiring 30 limited term employees to pursue bad actors and reclaims benefits stolen by fraudsters from taxpayers.
• $2,387,516 equitable access and communications grant to develop the plain-language Employer Help Center, which launched to publicly this week, and can be found at Michigan.gov/UIAEmployerHelpCenter.

New resources for workers

The Tiger Teams grant builds on other reforms led by Director Dale aimed at creating a national model for fast, fair, and fraud-free service:

• The UIA Claimant Roadmap is an easy-to-follow, user-friendly six step guide to applying for and understanding your benefits. You can find the roadmap at Michigan.gov/UIAClaimantRoadmap.
• First-time filer coaching sessions: Online, web-based guidance from UIA staff who will walk users in a group setting through the steps needed to complete an application and qualify for payments.
• The agency’s Advocacy Program has added new advocates and raised their compensation by 30 percent. The Advocacy Program provides free legal advice to workers and employers who appeal UIA determinations.
• Planning and design are underway to replace the decade-old MiWAM computer system used by workers to apply for benefits and employers to pay unemployment insurance taxes. The new system will be easy to use, speed claims processing, and build on the agency’s aggressive anti-fraud tactics. It is expected to be fully operational in 2025.

Transforming the UIA

Since being named to lead the UIA in October 2021– the agency's 11th director in as many years – Director Dale has launched a transformation of the agency and is committed to providing exemplary customer service to claimants and employers.

Some of the significant changes made:

• Creating the UIA Modernization Workgroup, consisting of labor, business and jobless advocates to advise the UIA on significant improvements in how it can better serve Michigan workers and employers.
• Naming a Legal Advisor and creating the Legal and Compliance Bureau to leverage collaborative anti-fraud practices to pursue bad actors, in collaboration with the Michigan Attorney General’s office, and local, state and federal law enforcement. To date, 162 people have been charged, 91 convicted, and 71 sentenced.
• Scoring 100 percent for the third year in a row from the USDOL, meeting the reasonable assurance of quality benchmark for employer audits in 2022, 2021, and 2020.
• Reassigning staff and resources to address the largest categories of claims that are contributing to the agency’s case backlogs.
• Rebuilding to more than $2.3 billion (and growing) the UI Trust Fund, from which weekly benefits are paid to workers.
• Approving more than 76,000 overpayment waivers (with more to come) of state and federal benefits paid out during the global pandemic, waiving more than $555 million.
• Halting overpayment collections on claims filed since March 1, 2020, while the agency addresses pending protests and appeals. More than $13 million was refunded to workers since May 2022.
• Implementing new ethics and security clearance policies for employees and contractors.

Need help with a claim or have questions?

Go to the UIA Claimant Roadmap First-time Filers Coaching Sessions

Go to the Employer Help Center

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