I am writing this question on behalf of my mother, who has been a public school bus driver for over 15 years in a large city in Virginia. The governor of VA, like many other states, has decided to close schools through the end of the school year. She is a salaried employee with a 24 check option, so she is still getting her "base pay" of roughly $700 every 2 weeks. However, a LARGE portion of her income has been taken away due to the schools closing - she usually doubles her salary with afterschool activity/sports runs, field trips, etc. Essentially her hours have been drastically reduced (at least, IMHO they have). These extra "runs" aren't guaranteed and many other drivers don't get them (they are first offered to the "senior" drivers who usually take most of them).

Mom is TERRIFIED to take the UI - she is concerned that because she is still being paid, she wouldn't qualify. But I disagree - her hours have been reduced due to COVID19 and through no fault of her own, so I think she should take it. She has already applied through the VEC and been approved! They are also giving her the extra $600 under the CARES Act. Doesn't the fact that she is approved mean they looked into her claim and deemed her qualified? She is losing sleep at night wondering if she can use this extra money to pay bills, get her truck repaired, etc. Is she committing fraud? She has tried to call VEC but as expected they are very difficult to get in touch with. What say you, redditors of unemployment? Edit: grammar