October 4, 2011
Courtesy of the SC Department of Employment and Workforce
The state’s unemployment insurance claimants will not be affected by Bank of America’s recent announcement of a $5 fee for debit card users. This recent announcement does not apply to the SC Department of Employment and Workforce’s (DEW) debit card program. There is no change to the DEW’s prepaid debit card program with respect to the schedule of fees. The DEW prepaid debit card can be used to make purchases anywhere Visa debit cards are accepted, get cash back from merchants with a purchase and from ATMs. Claimants can also receive cash in-person from tellers at banks accepting Visa cards. In July 2010, the DEW, in cooperation with Bank of America Merrill Lynch and Visa, began providing the Visa prepaid debit cards to unemployed South Carolinians as they applied for unemployment insurance benefits.
