By Olivia Lank, Matthew Campbell, Ayah Galal, Rob Polansky

HARTFORD, Connecticut (WFSB) -- Connecticut's governor is offering a new initiative to get the people of Connecticut back to work in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.

On Monday, Gov. Ned Lamont announced the "Back to Work CT Initiative," which will give people a $1,000 signing bonus when they get a new job.

Back to Work CT This bonus will be for 10,000 individuals who have been long-term unemployed.

Once those people have been in their job for eight weeks, they will receive $1,000 from the state.

Gov. Ned Lamont announce an initiative aimed to entice people to get back to work in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Lamont said the initiative begins on May 24.

To be eligible, workers must: Have filed an unemployment claim with the State of Connecticut for the week immediately prior to May 30, 2021. Obtain and maintain a full-time job for a period of eight consecutive weeks prior to Dec. 31, 2021. Not receive unemployment compensation during the required eight-week period of employment. Lamont said there are 65,000 job openings in the state that need to be filled.

Ashley Jankowski has been pouring drinks at Filomena’s on Main Street in Manchester for five years and said she has never seen the restaurant so short staffed. "We just can’t get the help. We’ve been overwhelmed," she said. "Bartenders, servers, kitchen help, drivers, everything."

She guesses the weekly $300 in federal money on top of state benefits is the reason why.

"People don’t want to work, they’re making more money on unemployment," Jankowski said.

The federal money expires in September and unlike other states, Lamont is not going to opt-out.

Instead, the state came up with the Back to Work CT plan.

Governor Ned Lamont is offering a new initiative to get the people of Connecticut back to work.

When asked about where the money is coming from, Lamont said the $10 million will come from the Cares Act.

Governor Ned Lamont is offering a new initiative to get the people of Connecticut back to work.

Jankowski hoped these incentives work because while she’s doing the work of two or three people, she said ultimately, the customers are impacted.

"There’s longer wait times, the food takes longer because we’re short staffed in the kitchen," she said. "Most people are ok with it, but you really do get those impatient customers as well."