Minnesota high school students celebrated their eligibility for pandemic-related unemployment assistance on Monday as Gov. Tim Walz encouraged more to apply for the benefits.
"I was super happy, I jumped out of my bed like, 'Ma, look, we got these benefits,' " said Rahma Farah, 17, who has worked since age 14 to help her mother with bills — but had no recourse when the COVID-19 pandemic hit and she lost her job.
"She was excited with me. We were all super grateful," said Farah, a student at Minneapolis South High School.
On Dec. 1, the Minnesota Court of Appeals ruled in favor of youth equity nonprofit Youthprise's lawsuit, finding that an unemployment law judge incorrectly determined that high school students were ineligible to receive Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (PUA).
Walz praised the young people who advocated for benefits Monday and encouraged Minnesota's high school students to apply for newly available PUA funds as soon as possible.
Walz recalled how he, as a high school student, worked in construction, on a ranch and as a dishwasher to help the family budget when a parent battled cancer.
"The idea that this is not a real deal, and they're not contributing to their families and that this unemployment insurance didn't make a huge difference was simply false," Walz said.
Walz said that he supports lawmakers who are now working to change the 1939 Minnesota law that bars otherwise qualified high school students from receiving unemployment benefits.
