Yesterday, the Minnesota Department of Labor and Industry (DLI) opened applications for the Frontline Worker Pay program. This program was signed into law on April 29, 2022, as a way to “thank those Minnesotans who worked on the frontlines during the COVID-19 peacetime emergency.”
The application period for Minnesota’s Frontline Worker Pay program runs through Friday, July 22, 2022. Frontline sector employers have a total of 15 days from the date applications became available (June 8, 2022) to provide notice to any employees that may be eligible for these benefits. To be eligible for the Frontline Worker Pay program, Minnesota workers:
- Must have been employed at least 120 hours in Minnesota in one or more frontline sectors between March 15, 2020, and June 30, 2021;
- For the hours worked during this time period the applicant –
- was not able to telework due to the nature of the individual’s work, and
- worked in close proximity to people outside of the individual’s household;
- Must meet the income requirements for at least one of the 2020 or 2021 tax years –
- workers with direct COVID-19 patient care responsibilities must have had an adjusted gross income* less than $350,000 for married taxpayers filing jointly, or less than $175,000 for other filers, and
- for workers in occupations without direct COVID-19 patient care responsibilities, the adjusted gross income* limit is $185,000 for married taxpayers filing jointly, or $85,000 for other filers; and
- Must not have received an unemployment insurance benefit payment for more than 20 weeks on a cumulative basis for weeks between March 15, 2020, and June 26, 2021
The DLI has also created a toolkit for individuals, employers, and other organizations to promote the Frontline Worker Pay program. This kit, which is also available in Hmong, Somali, and Spanish, includes an FAQ section, a application fact sheet, the Frontline Worker Pay law, employer notice forms, a link to access program updates, and a list of all 15 industry sectors that are included in this program.
Eligible workers can apply by visiting www.frontlinepay.mn.gov. Applications are available in English, Hmong, Somali, and Spanish. Likewise, you can learn more about the program in 16 additional languages by visiting the Frontline Worker Pay information page.
