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Two central Minnesota businesses are getting some extra funding from the Department of Employment and Economic Development.

While the COVID-19 pandemic has had an undeniably negative effect on every regional economy in the United States, the St. Cloud region saw the smallest over-the-year job decline of any region in Minnesota last year.

As part of National Manufacturers Month, many central Minnesota companies are trying to get the word out that it is no longer a dirty, dark, and dangerous career.

The Lost Wages Assistance program, managed by FEMA, will provide individuals receiving unemployment benefits with an extra $300 a week.

The week of July 25 is the last week for the additional benefit payment unless extended by the federal government.

Businesses with 50 or fewer employees are eligible for grants of up to $10,000.

Phase two of the Stay Safe MN plan is going into effect Monday, leaving many businesses and customers with questions about what the reopening will look like.

Unemployed Minnesotans are now able to claim extended benefits.

The daily number of Minnesotans applying for unemployment insurance has been on the decline since Friday, according to the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development.

Minnesotans are among the first in the country to receive additional unemployment benefits from the federal government during the COVID-19 pandemic.