Great Lakes Wire

As of May 30, Michigan will require unemployment claimants to "actively search for work" and report at least one search actively each week to remain eligible to receive benefits, the Department of Labor and Economic Opportunity said.

Work search activity can include submitting a job application, interviewing with an employer or attending a job fair. Other acceptable activities are contacting employers, checking resources at employment offices, checking job listings at Michigan Works, attending job fairs or employment workshops listed by the Department of Labor and Economic Opportunity. 

"It’s important for folks to understand that they must do them and they must tell us what those activities were to continue receiving their benefits,” said Liza Estlund Olson, head of the Michigan Unemployment Insurance Agency, in a Michigan Radio report.

Olson said that for those who are offered employment and refuse it, employers can report them to the unemployment office and benefits could consequently be denied. 

“If you’re offered a position, you need to take that position or there would be a potential for fact-finding of why you didn’t take that position when it was offered to you,” Olson said in the NPR report. 

According to Olson, there are still COVID-19-related waivers for some who say "no" to an offered position, but denial of a job even with the waiver could have their benefits garnished. 

“Because if they try to get the waiver at the time of certification and they have not done a work search activity, that will impact on their payment for that week,” Olson said as reported by NPR.

Detroit Free Press said COVID-19 exemptions include for those filers who are self-employed, unable to work as a direct result of having COVID-19, or are parents with children attending school virtually. 

ABC WXYZ reported that 47% of Detroit workers had to quit their jobs in part due to having to stay home with their children after being unable to find child care. The report also said that 43% of workers had to "a change of perspective about their career" because of the pandemic. 

During the pandemic rules requiring work search activity and proof of that activity were suspended from March 2020 until May 30, 2021, NPR reported. This was changed after the House Oversight Committee and the Michigan Chamber of Commerce heard complaints from employers that were working hard to hire, but not having any luck getting people to take jobs, the Detroit Free Press reported.