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FOR PRESS INQUIRIES, CONTACT:  Amy Susan (573) 751-1518
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:  May 4, 2011

Unemployment Information for Flood Victims

Jefferson City, Mo— The Missouri Department of Labor releases the following information about unemployment insurance for those affected by flooding:

All affected workers, owners, farmers, employers, and employees in the southeastern part of the state affected by flooding and unable to work should file for regular unemployment benefits. The only way to file an unemployment claim is by phone or by the internet.

Internet: Please visit www.moclaim.mo.gov. The Internet Claim Filing System is available 24 hours a day, except between 11:30 p.m. on Saturday and 12:31 a.m. on Sunday, Central Time.

Telephone: Missouri Unemployment Claims Center Phone number 1-800-320-2519. The telephone filing system is available from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., Central Time, Monday through Friday, except holidays. The Regional Claims Centers (RCC) answers calls in the order they are received. You must call from a touch-tone phone. Your call will be answered by an Interactive Voice Response (IVR) System. You will be given a menu of services. Once you are on the line to speak with a representative, do not hang up and call back. That will only increase your wait time by putting you again at the back of the call line.

Individuals who have become unemployed as a result of a major disaster and who are not eligible for regular state unemployment insurance benefits may be eligible for Disaster Unemployment Assistance (DUA). Once the Disaster declaration has been confirmed by the President, the public will be notified and only then can applications for DUA be filed.

For more information on unemployment and updates for jobless disaster victims, visit http://www.labor.mo.gov/DES/notices.asp.

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