Unemployment benefits set to rise for some new claimants in Massachusetts

By Chris Reidy, Globe Staff

The maximum weekly benefit rate for new unemployment claims filed on or after Oct. 2 will increase from the current rate of $625 to $653, a change that could affect roughly 20 percent of new claimants filing for assistance, the state’s Executive Office of Labor and Workforce Development said today.

Under Massachusetts law, the maximum benefit rate is adjusted once a year based on a formula that takes into account the state’s average weekly wage. That average rose from $1,088.06 to $1,135.82. By law, the maximum benefit rate equals 57.5 percent of the state’s annual average weekly wage.

Over the last year, between 18 percent and 25 percent of people receiving unemployment benefits from Massachusetts qualified for the maximum weekly benefit rate. The annual adjustment does not affect the size of the benefit check for people who earned less than the state’s average weekly wage.

This new benefit rate also will not affect the weekly benefit amount of individuals who filed new claims before Oct. 2, but have not yet received benefits checks, the executive office said; unemployment insurance claimants in Massachusetts receive a weekly benefit amount of 50 percent of his or her average weekly wage up to the maximum weekly amount.