Many of our brothers and sisters have been laid off, furloughed or even fired during this crisis. Governor Parson has been slow to act since this pandemic began. Governor Parson and his administration have the power to streamline the unemployment application process and make sure people get the assistance they need as soon as possible.

Politicians in Jefferson City have a history of making it harder for Missourians to receive unemployment benefits, this pandemic has only amplified the problem. With pressure from all of us, some of the unnecessary red tape implemented by the Republican supermajority has been cut but there are still barriers in place.

We are also calling on the Governor to extend unemployment assistance to last twenty weeks beyond the end of the declared emergency and work with federal authorities to ensure access to disaster-related unemployment assistance covering the self-employed, freelance and other irregular workers.

Working families need action and they need it now.