Figure F
UI enhancements to eligibility, benefits levels, and duration worked in tandem to boost incomes during the COVID-19 shock: Boost to wage and salary income provided by various pandemic UI programs
| Date | UI (traditional state programs) | EB (standard extended duration) | PEUC (extended weeks of benefits) | PUA (expanded eligibility) | PUC (increased benefit levels) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mar-2020 | 0.80% | 0.00% | 0.00% | 0.00% | 0.00% |
| Apr-2020 | 3.36% | 0.00% | 0.01% | 0.31% | 2.00% |
| May-2020 | 3.57% | 0.00% | 0.09% | 1.33% | 10.21% |
| Jun-2020 | 3.06% | 0.00% | 0.14% | 1.74% | 10.43% |
| Jul-2020 | 2.81% | 0.01% | 0.18% | 1.69% | 9.69% |
| Aug-2020 | 2.33% | 0.03% | 0.23% | 1.82% | 2.38% |
| Sep-2020 | 1.90% | 0.05% | 0.36% | 1.50% | 0.00% |
| Oct-2020 | 1.22% | 0.08% | 0.61% | 1.25% | 0.00% |
| Nov-2020 | 0.93% | 0.10% | 0.70% | 1.15% | 0.00% |
| Dec-2020 | 0.88% | 0.16% | 0.65% | 1.01% | 0.42% |
| Jan-2021 | 0.80% | 0.24% | 0.62% | 0.99% | 2.98% |
| Feb-2021 | 0.72% | 0.20% | 0.77% | 1.00% | 2.74% |
| Mar-2021 | 0.62% | 0.13% | 0.85% | 0.95% | 2.87% |
| Apr-2021 | 0.60% | 0.07% | 0.80% | 0.92% | 2.53% |
Note: To capture how much the traditional state UI programs boosted income (darkest shading), we subtract from overall UI the contributions of the EB, PEUC, PUA, and PUC programs. We calculate the proportion of total wage and salary income that comes from income from each program.
Source: Overall UI and personal income data from Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA 2021b). Specific pandemic program data from BEA 2021a.
This chart appears in:
- Section 4. Benefit duration: Expand UI benefit duration to provide longer protection during normal times and use better measures of labor market distress to automatically extend and sustain benefits during downturns
- UI Report
- How to boost unemployment insurance as a macroeconomic stabilizer: Lessons from the 2020 pandemic programs
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