Commissioner Gary Molloy announces important updates for the benefit year starting Jan. 1, 2024. Noteworthy changes include the Maximum Weekly Benefit Amount (MWBA) set at $645.00 and a Taxable Wage Base (TWB) of $31,000.00 for employer contributions.
The Maximum Weekly Benefit Amount is calculated as 65 percent of the average weekly wage in insured work, rounded down to the nearest dollar. The established average weekly wage is $993.02, and the average annual wage is $51,637.00, based on employment and wage statistics from the local Bureau of Labor Statistics. These changes, following regulations in the Virgin Islands Unemployment Insurance Act, specifically Title 24, Chapter 12, Section 303(c), and Section 308(c), are crucial for the financial stability of the Unemployment Insurance program.
Commissioner Gary Molloy emphasizes that these adjustments are based on earnings, and the taxable wage base reflects the annual average income of individuals in the Virgin Islands.
For more detailed information, contact the Department of Labor’s Unemployment Insurance Division Tax Unit at 773-1994 on St. Croix or 776-3700 on St. Thomas.
Further information can be found on the official website: www.vidol.gov.
