Disaster Unemployment Assistance Available to Hurricane Zeta Survivors

Disaster Unemployment Assistance (DUA) is now available to certain workers in Orleans Parish who lost income as a direct result of Hurricane Zeta. The purpose of DUA is to help workers whose primary incomes are lost or interrupted by a federally declared disaster. DUA may be available if the disaster affected your employment — even if you’re self-employed, a farmer or a farm worker — and you fall under one of the following categories:

• Your workplace was damaged or destroyed by the disaster.
• Transportation to work was unavailable as a direct result of the disaster.
• You could not get to your job because you had to travel through the disaster area.
• The disaster prevented you from starting a new job.
• Your business suffered because you relied on the disaster area for most of its income
• You cannot work due to an injury caused as a direct result of the major disaster
• You became the breadwinner or major household support because the head of your household died as a direct result of the disaster.
• You became unemployed as a direct result of the disaster.

Apply for disaster unemployment assistance by Feb. 12.

Affected workers must first apply for regular unemployment insurance prior to starting a DUA application. Apply by visiting www.laworks.net, the Helping Individuals Reach Employment portal.

Claimants may also file by telephone by calling the Benefits Analysis Team at 866-783-5567 from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. from Monday through Friday and 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday.

For the latest information on Hurricane Zeta, visit https://www.fema.gov/disaster/4577. Follow the FEMA Region 6 Twitter account at twitter.com/FEMARegion6.