Projo Biz Blog

About 14,000 out-of-work Rhode Islanders will be eligible for up to 20 weeks of additional unemployment benefits as a result of legislation approved by Congress on Thursday and signed into law yesterday by President Bush.

Payments could begin as soon as Dec. 6, said Raymond A. Filippone, assistant director of the state Department of Labor and Training who oversees unemployment insurance.

In Rhode Island, the maximum weekly benefit is $528, not including additional amounts for dependents. With dependents, the maximum is $660. The average weekly benefit is $350, Filippone said.

The new law comes a day after the Deparment of Labor and Training reported that the state's unemployment rate rose to 9.3 percent last month - the highest since February 1983.

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