Unemployment Offices to Reopen In-Person Services

The Department of Labor & Industrial Relations (DLIR) announced Wednesday that it will open offices statewide beginning Dec. 1, 2021.

Services from all programs in the department will be available Wednesdays through Fridays. Telephone appointments for general unemployment insurance and claims adjudication services will continue on Mondays and Tuesdays.

“We are expanding our services to include in-person services in light of decreased COVID-19 case counts and increased vaccination rates in Hawai´i,” said DLIR Director Anne Perreira-Eustaquio. “We will continue to assess departmental operations as we move towards the new year with an eye on completely reopening for services during all regular state business days.”

Persons seeking in-person services will be required to show proof of full vaccination or testing prior to entry of all offices, pursuant to Gov. Ige’s Executive Order 21-07, as well as adhere to social distancing guidelines and mask wearing while inside the offices.

DLIR will continue to offer telephone appointments for the Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (PUA) program and employer services Mondays through Fridays, and for claims adjudication and general unemployment insurance inquiries on Mondays and Tuesdays. The latter is the only change, as persons with general unemployment insurance inquiries may visit the offices Wednesdays through Fridays beginning Dec. 1, 2021.

Access to all appointments is available via the web (Chrome or Microsoft Edge) at: labor.hawaii.gov/ui/appointments/.

None of the benefits described above, nor unemployment benefits of any kind, are available to employees who are terminated for cause, quit their job without good cause, or refuse to return to work. Attempts to collect benefit payments in these situations could be viewed as fraudulent. Investigation of job separation is part of the eligibility determination process.

For more information, visit https://www.hawaiiunemploymentinfo.com/.

For more information about unemployment insurance and other labor issues, visit https://labor.hawaii.gov/covid-19-labor-faqs/.