https://www.oig.dol.gov/public/reports/oa/2022/19-22-005-03-315.pdf Using data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics Current Population Survey, we examine disability prevalence, education levels, employment and related characteristics, poverty, health insurance coverage and the impact of COVID-19 on the employment of women with disabilities. The CARES Act provided significant funding to the UI program, which resulted in hundreds of billions of dollars in additional payments. 44 Examples include: Recovery Act: DOL Could Have Better Monitored the Use of Re-employment Services Funds to Adhere to Standards for Transparency and Accountability, WASHINGTON The U.S. Department of Labor today announced the award of more than $49.4 million in grants to 17 organizations in 15 states to provide reduce backlogs. In addition, we took several other actions to augment our efforts, including the following: During the execution of a UI fraud search warrant, OIG agents recovered multiple firearms, UI debit cards, and notebooks containing PII. 19-21-004-03-315 (May 28, 2021), available at: https://www.oig.dol.gov/public/reports/oa/2021/19-21-004-03-315.pdf This report examines the way young adults on the autism spectrum (ages 16 to 28) engaged with state Vocational Rehabilitation (VR) agencies, the characteristics of those who applied for VR services, the VR services that they used, and their employment outcomes. 29 COVID-19: ETA and States Did Not Protect Pandemic-Related UI Funds from Improper Payments including Fraud or from Payment Delays, Report No. Labor Main Page | Industrial Commission of Arizona DHS has long considered requests for deferred action submitted by noncitizen workers who fall within the scope of a labor agency investigation and/or enforcement action. 34 GAO, Unemployment Insurance: Data Indicate Substantial Levels of Fraud during the Pandemic; DOL Should Implement an Antifraud Strategy, Report No. .cd-main-content p, blockquote {margin-bottom:1em;} .paragraph--type--html-table .ts-cell-content {max-width: 100%;} 19-21-002-03-315 (February 22, 2021), available at: ol{list-style-type: decimal;} (see Figure 2). 42 Five Eyes is an intelligence alliance. ETA could immediately amend its interpretation of its regulations to be consistent with the Inspector General Act of 1978, as amended. Tucson is about 800 jobs shy of where we were in In another OIG investigation, a Federal Bureau of Prisons inmate, already incarcerated on an unrelated fraud conviction, was sentenced to 41 months in prison in connection with a scheme to defraud multiple SWAs and the U.S. Small Business Administration of more than $2.2 million in COVID-19 pandemic assistance. 21 The Greatest Theft of American Tax Dollars: Unchecked Unemployment Fraud, Hearing, Statement for the Record of Larry D. Turner, Inspector General, U.S. Department of Labor; House Committee on Ways and Means (February 8, 2023), available at: https://www.oig.dol.gov/public/testimony/02082023.pdf We have been and remain particularly concerned about deployment of UI benefits in response to emergencies including natural disasters and economic downturns. Trump rejected lawyers efforts to avoid classified documents The reliance solely on claimant self-certifications without evidence of eligibility and wages during the programs first 9 months rendered the PUA program extremely susceptible to improper payments including fraud. These are similar to DOL proposals included in prior DOL budget requests that would help address UI program integrity and the high improper payment rates in the UI program. COVID19, INCREASED WORKSITE COMPLAINTS AND 49 FY 2021 Independent Auditor's Report on the DOL Financial Statements, Report No. As the OIGs prior audit work has shown, quickly deploying funds can result in shortcomings in the effective and efficient implementation of stimulus programs. WebFebruary 25, 2021 WHY OIG CONDUCTED THE AUDIT The COVID-19 pandemic has raised specific concerns about the health and safety of workers and the measures OSHA has taken to ensure employers are mitigating employees risk of 4 Recovery Act: DOL Could Have Better Monitored the Use of Re-employment Services Funds to Adhere to Standards for Transparency and Accountability, Report No. WASHINGTON The U.S. Department of Labor today announced the award of more than $49.4 million in grants to 17 organizations in 15 states to provide training, employment and supportive services to adults reentering the workforce following incarceration in a local jail or state correctional facility. The findings from this project also highlight a number of areas for future research and provide guidance on five strategies to expand evidence on effective SAW/RTW interventions. Continuous monitoring serves as a deterrent to fraud, allows the OIG to promptly discover areas of weakness, and enables DOL management to timely correct problems. For the 50 states, as well as the U.S. Virgin Islands, Puerto Rico, and the District of Columbia, that administrative body is a SWA. 35 More information on the National UI Fraud Task Force is available at: .h1 {font-family:'Merriweather';font-weight:700;} 3 COVID-19: States Struggled to Implement CARES Act Unemployment Insurance Programs, Report No. Relates to taxi drivers; relates to sex offenders prohibitions; relates to vehicles for hire; relates to criminal background checks; relates to vehicle safety The reported improper payment rate estimate for the regular UI program has been above 10 percent for 15 of the last 19 years. 19-23-005-03-315 (March 31, 2023), available at:https://www.oig.dol.gov/public/reports/oa/2023/19-23-005-03-315.pdf 19-22-005-03-315 (September 21, 2022), available at: https://www.oig.dol.gov/public/reports/oa/2022/19-22-005-03-315.pdf That state responded that the problem would be addressed by the end of August 2020. Furthermore, 15 of 24 (63 percent) of state contracts did not include privacy security measures based on the National Strategy for Trusted Identities in Cyberspace12 necessary to protect UI claimants biometric data. The court determined that the prior Administrations Independent Contractor Status Under the Fair Labor Standards Act rule took effect as of its original effective date, March 8, 2021, and remains in effect. These reductions in the OIGs investigative and audit capacity are of great concern given the issues discussed in this testimony. WebFederal Pandemic Unemployment Compensation (FPUC) ended. The UI program requires states to make weekly benefit payments while ensuring claimants meet eligibility requirements. An agency within the U.S. Department of Labor, 200 Constitution AveNW Office of Inspector General - U.S. Department of Labor - About OIG The OIG conducts independent oversight of the UI program through audits to strengthen the integrity and DOL continues to interpret regulations at 20 Code of Federal Regulations Part 603 as prohibiting ETA from requiring SWAs to provide UI data to the OIG for all audit purposes and for investigative purposes, other than those involving specific instances of suspected fraud. Recovery Act: States Challenged in Detecting and Reducing Unemployment Insurance Improper Payments, Report No. The OIGs efforts to strengthen and protect the UI program continue. While these investigative resources helped us address the incredible volume of UI fraud matters, the process of collecting and cleaning the SWA data required a significant amount of time. example, in 2020 and 2021, the OIG supported DOJs annual Money Mule Initiative,40 which aimed to raise awareness div#block-eoguidanceviewheader .dol-alerts p {padding: 0;margin: 0;} 19 Unemployment Insurance During COVID-19: The CARES Act and the Role of Unemployment Insurance During the Pandemic, Hearing, Statement for the Record of Scott S. Dahl, Inspector General, U.S. Department of Labor; Senate Committee on Finance (June 9, 2020), available at: https://www.oig.dol.gov/public/testimony/20200609.pdf The Five Eyes countries include Australia, Canada, New Zealand, the United Kingdom and the United States. 37 The OIG has issued or assisted in issuing an: UI fraud consumer protection guide; UI fraud investigations guide; UI fraud alert for state/local law enforcement; UI text message phishing alert; UI fraud and phishing alert; UI fraud and identity theft alert; and UI detection and mitigation alert for financial institutions, available at: https://www.oig.dol.gov/OIG_Pandemic_Response_Portal.htm Request for Membership Nominations for the Advisory Committee International Public Sector Fraud Forum guidance is available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/international-public-sector-fraud-forum-guidance A majority of young adults on the autism spectrum have one or more co-occurring health or mental health conditions, and young adults on the autism spectrum are more likely than young adults without disabilities to be living in households with income below the federal poverty level. on the UI program. prosecutorial resources. ATLANTA In what may be the largest misclassification case in its history, the U.S. Department of Labor has asked a federal court to force a Florida-based customer service provider for major national brands, including Barnes & Noble, Comcast, Disney and Walgreens, to pay back wages and liquidated damages to more than 22,000 workers after investigators found the employer misclassified employees as independent contractors and denied them their legally required minimum wage and overtime pay. 14 The Middle Class Tax Relief and Job Creation Act of 2012 requires that individuals receiving UI benefits must be able to work, available to work, and actively seeking work as a condition of eligibility for regular compensation for any week. initiated the development of a National UI Fraud Task Force. (February 2022) Disability is a natural part of the human experience, including within the Black community. DOL asserted it lacked the authority to require SWAs to provide UI data to the OIG for audits and investigations. 2023 Trafficking in Persons Report - United States Department of For more information about the OIG's work, please visit our Pandemic Response Portal69, 1 In this document, the OIG uses state or SWA to refer to the administrative body that administers the UI program within the state, district, or territory. https://www.oig.dol.gov/public/reports/oa/2004/04-04-004-03-315.pdf Additionally, we have highlighted three highpriority recommendations for Congress at the end of the section. of Labor The power and use of data and predictive analytics enables the OIG to continuously monitor DOL programs and operations to detect and investigate fraud. Further, for similar reasons, Congress could consider extending the federal statute of limitations for states to pursue administrative recoveries in cases of proven overpayments including fraud and with appropriate due process. WASHINGTON The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission In 2022, more than 50 million workers quit their jobs, many of whom were in search of an improved work-life balance and flexibility, increased compensation, and a strong company culture. President William Howard Taft signed the act creating the U.S. Department of Labor in his final hours as president on March 4, 1913. @media only screen and (min-width: 0px){.agency-nav-container.nav-is-open {overflow-y: unset!important;}} GAO-23-105523 (December 22, 2022), available at: The site is secure. The OIG has also worked with the PRAC, DOJ, and the Secret Service to create a web-based survey where financial 27 With the exception of PUA, for which claims could be backdated to January 27, 2020, we define the UI pandemic period as March 27, 2020, through September 6, 2021. Anticipating and addressing the increased risk that came with the expanded funding was also vital to meeting the intent of the CARES Act. NY State Employee COVID-19 Vaccination Proof (DOL) Pursuant to ongoing NYS Office of Employee Relations direction, all DOL employees are required to submit proof of vaccination to the Employee Vaccination Submission Portal. the award of $11.7 million in grants to three organizations to support programs that help youth and young adults in communities affected by violence and poverty to prepare for career success in the labor market. The OIG offers an important investment for U.S. taxpayers, particularly in times of resource constraint. ETA notified one state in June 2020 that its form did not include the required questions confirming that claimants are able and available to work.29 However, by then, that state had paid more than $4 billion in PUA benefits, including FPUC. Thousands Employment change by industry with confidence intervals, May 2023, seasonally adjusted, in thousands, 1- month net change Employment change 90-percent confidence interval -200 0 200 400 600 Total nonfarm Total private Goods-producing Service providing Mining and logging Construction Manufacturing Wholesale Washington, D.C. 20210 1-800-397-6251 (toll-free) NEW JERSEY LAW PROHIBITS WORKER The percent of We simply do not have the resources to review the 160,000+ open UI fraud complaints and to conduct investigations of each instance of suspected fraud before the statute of limitations expires. In May 2020, we issued an alert memorandum, In August 2022, we issued an alert memorandum, As of September 2022, we have issued three alert memoranda, In December 2022, for the second straight year, we issued, In March 2023, we issued an alert memorandum, Implement immediate measures to ensure ongoing OIG access to UI claims data for all audit and investigative purposes, Expedite regulatory updates to require ongoing disclosures of UI information to the OIG for audits and investigations of federal programs, Continue to work with states to develop, operate, and maintain a modular set of technological capabilities (i.e., staffing and replacing legacy IT systems) to modernize the delivery of UI benefits that is sufficient to manage and process sudden spikes in claims volume during emergencies or high unemployment. Department of Labor Similarly, in July 2020, ETA notified another state that its PUA monetary determination form did not have a procedure in place for re-determining the claimants weekly benefit if the claimant did not provide proof of earnings or provided insufficient proof. Sheriff Grady Judd is briefing the media regarding the arrests of twelve people in a family-run drug trafficking operation in Winter Haven called Operation Family Affair. The previous week's average was revised up by 250 from 255,750 to 256,000. Who: U.S. Department of Labors Wage and Hour Division, U.S. Department of Labors Womens Bureau, U.S. The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act also provided certain UI benefits to American Samoa, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, the Federated States of Micronesia, Guam, the Marshall Islands, and the Republic of Palau, provided the territory signs an agreement with the Department. We previously reported that, applying the 18.71 percent to the estimated $872.5 billion in pandemic UI funding, at least $163 billion in federal pandemic UI benefits could have been paid improperly, with a significant portion attributable to fraud. Less than a month after the CARES Act passed, we published an advisory report2 outlining areas of concern that ETA and the states should consider as they implemented the CARES Act UI provisions. Extend the statute of limitations for fraud involving pandemic-related UI programs, Ensure DOL and the OIG have ongoing, timely, and complete access to UI claimant data and wage records, Ensure effective payment integrity controls to reduce improper payments in all UI programs including temporary ones, such as broader requirements for mandatory cross-matching, other worker benefit programs, such as workers' compensation, worker safety and health, including occupational and miner safety and health and workplace rights, employment and training programs, including grants and the Job Corps program, statistics, legal and international programs, and contracting, information technology and data analytics, ETAs efforts to ensure UI program integrity;*, DOLs oversight of emergency UI administrative transfers to states;*, ETA and state efforts to detect and recover overpayments;*, effectiveness of programs for nontraditional claimants;*, effectiveness of the Temporary Full Federal Funding program;*, effectiveness of the Short-Time Compensation program;*, effectiveness of the Mixed Earners Unemployment Compensation program;*, effectiveness of the Emergency Unemployment Relief for State and Local Governmental Entities Certain Nonprofit Organizations, and Federally Recognized Indian Tribes;*, PRAC Case Study Project on federal pandemic response funds in select geographic areas;*, concerns over use of third-party identity verification;*. provide oversight and management of the $2 billion allotted to UI initiatives by ARPA to prevent and detect fraud, promote equitable access, ensure timely benefit payments, and In fact, we announced in September 2022 that OIG investigations has resulted in more than 1,000 individuals being charged with crimes involving UI fraud since March 2020.39 This number has risen. That, combined with easily attainable stolen personally identifiable information (PII) and continuing UI program weaknesses identified by the OIG over the last several years, allowed criminals to defraud the system. from hampering preparedness for future emergencies. Based on our audit and investigative work, the improper payment rate for pandemic UI programs is likely higher than 21.52 percent. In June 2020, the OIG provided a member briefing18 and a statement for the record19 to Congress highlighting challenges DOL and states faced in administering and overseeing the UI program as well as the substantially increased fraud risk. Interest on their debt will begin accruing even sooner. U.S. Department of Labor Office of Labor-Management The Current Employment Statistics (CES) program produces detailed industry estimates of nonfarm employment, hours, and earnings of workers on payrolls. .manual-search-block #edit-actions--2 {order:2;} White Child labor violations on the rise as some states look to ETA announced its intent to amend its regulations to allow the OIGs ongoing access by February 2025. 19-22-006-03-315 (September 30, 2022), available at: https://www.oig.dol.gov/public/reports/oa/2022/19-22-006-03-315.pdf 19-22-005-03-315 (September 21, 2022), available at: PUAs expanded coverage, for a population of claimants who were traditionally ineligible to receive UI benefits,6 presented significant challenges to states as they designed and implemented processes to determine Key reminder: If you have been laid off and have not received your last paycheck on time, please contact the Department of Labors (DOL) Wage and Hour It is equally important that the program has sufficient controls in place to quickly determine that benefits are or were paid to the right person in the correct amount. Prior to the pandemic, the OIG opened approximately 100 UI investigative matters annually. about and suppress money mule activity. 25 ETAs reported improper payment rate estimate of 21.52 percent does not include the PUA program. partners are working with hundreds of financial institutions in response to our request. The fraud rate for 2022 is likely to be published in October 2023. The proposals from the Presidents FY 2024 budget request include the following: These legislative proposals are consistent with previous OIG findings and recommendations to improve the UI program. The results of our 4-phased pandemic response oversight plan will include recommendations for DOL to strengthen and enhance programs prior to the start of emergencies. U.S. Department of Labor | USAGov The National UI Fraud Task Force has also worked closely with For tools and other resources related to research highlighted in this section, please visit project-specific pages. The OIG has reiterated these concerns regarding the economic downturn created by the pandemic and the hundreds of billions of dollars allocated to the UI program. Before sharing sensitive information, In support of the OIGs oversight activities, the OIG needs access to UI claimant data and wage records from SWAs to verify claimants eligibility for UI benefits, including both initial eligibility (and amounts) and continuing eligibility. To date, ETA has only implemented temporary solutions that are not sufficient to resolve the OIGs recommendation or concerns. Tucson is struggling to get back to the number of jobs it had before the pandemic hit in February, 2020. 40 More information about DOJs Money Mule Initiative is available at: https://www.justice.gov/civil/consumer-protection-branch/money-mule-initiative. collaborated with DOJ on the strategic assignment of 12 term-appointed assistant United States attorneys assigned solely to prosecute UI fraud; established a multi-disciplinary Pandemic Rapid Response Team within the OIG; appointed a National UI Fraud Coordinator to manage our national investigative response to UI fraud; appointed seven Regional UI Fraud Coordinators to partner with SWAs and federal, state, and local law enforcement on UI fraud matters in their geographic areas of responsibility; leveraged resources from the Council of the Inspectors General on Integrity and Efficiency, Pandemic Response Accountability Committee (PRAC); collaborated with state auditors to help develop their audit strategies for the CARES Act UI programs; joined the DOJ COVID-19 Fraud Enforcement Task Force; implemented an extensive outreach and education program targeted to SWAs, the Department, financial institutions and their associations, law enforcement agencies, and the public to inform and raise awareness regarding fraud trends, best practices, red flags, and more; joined the DOJs Pandemic Fraud Strike Force Teams initiative. In addition to working with our law enforcement partners to combat fraud in the program, we will be issuing additional audit reports covering In one recent OIG investigation, a YouTube rapper was sentenced to 77 months in prison and was ordered to pay more than $700,000 in restitution for his role in a UI fraud scheme, which caused more than 90 fraudulent PUA claims to be filed with the California Employment Development Department (EDD). data and work with those financial institutions to return fraudulent funds to SWAs. 17 The PUA program covered workers not typically covered by UI who could self-certify that they were able to and available for work but unemployed due to COVID-19 related reasons. Our identification of these areas represents years of work relating to DOLs UI program, including the response to past disasters. In addition, the OIGs FY 2021 and FY 2022 appropriations remained flat and the FY 2023 appropriation was $11 million less than requested. The inmate also successfully obtained a fraudulent Paycheck Protection Program loan of more than $20,000.