In order to better serve our customers around the Commonwealth, beginning Monday, June 17, the VEC will have new hours of operation at stand-alone local offices and at One-Stops. VEC services will be available to customers from 8:30 a.m. until 5:00 p.m. Mondays and Fridays. On Tuesdays and Thursdays, service will be available from 8:30 a.m. until 6:00 p.m. On Wednesdays, services will be available from 9:30 a.m. until 5:00 p.m. Offices will be open continuously through the day and will not be closed for lunch.

*** Attention Federal Employees Facing Sequestration ***

If you are a federal employee who has been furloughed from your job due to sequestration, please note that no claim for unemployment insurance may be filed or processed until an actual lay off (furlough) from employment has occurred, or until there has been an actual reduction in hours. Eligibility is not automatic and will depend on the exact terms of separation. If you will be filing because of a reduction in hours, you will not receive benefits unless your gross earnings are less than your weekly benefit amount. Currently the maximum weekly benefit amount in Virginia is $378. You may file a claim for unemployment insurance through this Website by clicking the link below to File a new claim for unemployment benefits or through our Customer Contact Center by calling 1-866-832-2363.

*** Notice To Claimants Regarding Reduction In EUC Benefit Entitlement ***

The Budget Control Act of 2011 (Public Law 112-25) passed by Congress and signed by the President requires reductions to many federal programs, including the Emergency Unemployment Compensation (EUC) program. These reductions are generally known as “sequestration.” This means that payments of EUC benefits in Virginia for weeks that begin on or after May 12, 2013, must be reduced by 14.2 percent for each week of unemployment through September 2013. On May 1, 2013, the Virginia Employment Commission will mail out a notice to all current active EUC claimants advising them of the impending reduction. The notice will be followed by the mailing of a revised EUC Monetary Determination. The revised EUC Monetary Determination will provide claimants with information concerning their remaining entitlement and new weekly benefit amount. Any new EUC claim established effective May 12, 2013, or later will automatically carry the 14.2 percent reduction in benefits.