The Georgia Department of Labor says Georgians who are heading back to work and failing to report their wages are committing fraud. A release from Commissioner Mark Butler’s office says about 10,000 Georgians have returned to work, but continued to request unemployment insurance, without reporting their wages. State and federal law require individuals to report gross wages each week they work and claim benefits.
Overpayments must be paid back to GDOL. Recipients of intentional overpayment could face civil or criminal penalties, disqualification of future UI benefits, and even jail.
Georgians have received more than $19 billion since March 21 of 2020, more than the past 43 years combined. Last week, the GDOL dispersed over $278 million in unemployment benefits.
