OED offers more than $2.3M in grants to fund nonprofits on outreach, education for unemployment insurance

Starting Sept. 29, you can learn more about the requirements of this grant and apply at Oregonbuys.gov. Return to this page for a link to the Request for Grant Proposals and more updates. 

If your organization has the resources, expertise, and capacity to reach people of your community and help them thrive in difficult economic times, we want to help fund those efforts. 

The Oregon Employment Department (OED) wants to make the benefits from the Unemployment Insurance (UI) Program more accessible, especially for marginalized communities. To accomplish this, we’re offering more than $2.3 million in grants to nonprofits that can help connect communities with the benefits they need.

Our goal is to improve access to benefits, especially for workers who have been historically underserved, marginalized, and affected by poverty and inequity. We recognize the department’s limitations in reaching these communities, due to a variety of factors, including a lack of cultural knowledge and connections.

That’s why we want to partner with community-based organizations that already have these connections, are committed to educating these communities about available resources, and are ready to help people to access these benefits. We are seeking groups that know how to reach their communities, identify problems, and collaborate with us to develop long-term solutions.

To support these efforts, the American Rescue Plan Act UI Navigator Program has set aside a total of $2.3 million in grants to fund the efforts of community-based organizations across Oregon. We invite your proposals to:

• Conduct targeted outreach activities to people of color and other workers who have been historically underserved, marginalized, and adversely affected by persistent poverty and inequality.
• Raise awareness of UI benefits and eligibility requirements, applications, and certification requirements.
• Assist workers in accessing UI benefits and refer potential individual eligibility problems to OED.
• Collaborate with OED to increase awareness of the program through avenues that best suit community members’ needs.