LANSING, MI (WKZO AM/FM) – About 88,000 Michigan residents on unemployment will be getting a boost in benefits after Governor Gretchen Whitmer signed several bills Monday that increase benefits for the first time since 2011.
Unemployment benefits will extend from 20 weeks to 26 weeks, under the new law, reversing cuts made during the Snyder administration. Previously, Michigan was one of only 12 states offering less than 26 weeks of benefits.
The bills also raises the maximum weekly benefit over a three year period from $362 to $614, the first increase since 2003.
Some Republicans were critical of the increases, saying the change will result in a major cost increase for employers around the state.
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