Some citizens in Tennessee who lost their job because of the COVID-19 pandemic and applied for benefits through the Pandemic Unemployment Assistance fund were eligible for 39 weeks of pay. The program provided benefits to individuals who worked jobs not traditionally covered by unemployment insurance.

According to the Tennessee Department of Labor and Workforce Development, no matter when a person applied for the benefits, all pandemic-based unemployment is set to end December 26, 2020. The Department has sent notices to advise those individuals to find work before the benefits run out.

The United States Department of Labor announced the Extended Benefits program will end this Saturday, November 7, 2020. The Extended Benefits was provided to individuals who exhausted their regular 26 weeks of benefits. Officials said at least 230,000 jobs are currently listed on the state’s workforce database.