S2741 1R

An Act concerning short-time unemployment benefits and amending P.L.2011, c.154.

Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:

1. Section 1 of P.L.2011, c.154 (C.43:21-20.3) is amended to read as follows:

1. For the purposes of this act:

“Affected unit” means a specified plant or other facility, department, shift or other definable unit which includes two or more employees to which an approved short-time benefits program applies.

“Division” means the Division of Unemployment and Temporary Disability Insurance of the Department of Labor and Workforce Development, or any representative of the division responsible for approval or other division responsibilities regarding a shared work program.

¹[“Full-time hours” means not less than 30 and not more than 40 hours per week.]¹

“Health insurance and pension coverage” means employer-provided health benefits, and retirement benefits under a defined benefit plan, as defined in section 414(j) of the Internal Revenue Code (26 U.S.C. 414(j)), or employer contributions under a defined contribution plan, as defined in section 414(i) of the Internal Revenue Code (26 U.S.C. 414(i)), which are incidents of employment in addition to the cash remuneration earned.

“Shared work employer” means an employer who is providing a shared work program approved by the division pursuant to section 2 of this act.

“Shared work program” means a program submitted by an employer for approval by the division pursuant to section 2 of P.L.2011, c.154 (C. 43:21-20.4) and approved by the division, under which the employer requests short-time benefits to employees in an affected unit of the employer to avert layoffs.

“Short-time benefits” means unemployment benefits payable to employees of an affected unit under an approved shared work program that are intended to be in lieu of [temporary] layoffs and provided pursuant to sections 1 through 9 of this act, as distinguished from unemployment benefits otherwise payable under the New Jersey "unemployment compensation law," R.S. 43:21-1 et seq.

“Usual weekly hours of work” means the usual hours of work for ¹[a full-time or part-time] an¹ employee in the affected unit when that unit is operating on its regular basis, not to exceed forty hours and not including hours of overtime work.

(cf: P.L.2011, c.154, s.1)

2. Section 2 of P.L.2011, c.154 (C.43:21-20.4) is amended to read as follows:

2. An employer who has not less than 10 employees, who are each employed for not less than 1,500 hours per year, may apply to the division for approval to provide a shared work program, the purpose of which is to stabilize the employer's work force during a period of economic disruption by permitting the sharing of the work remaining after a reduction in total hours of work. Any subsidizing of seasonal employment during off season, ¹[of employers who traditionally use part-time employees,]¹ or of temporary ¹[part-time]¹ or intermittent employment on an ongoing basis, is contrary to the purpose of a shared work program approved pursuant to this act. The application for a shared work program shall be made according to procedures and on forms specified by the division and shall include whatever information the division requires. The division may approve the program for a period of not longer than one year and may, upon employer request, renew the approval of the program [annually] for additional periods, each period not to exceed one year. The division shall not approve an application unless the employer:

a. (1) Certifies to the division that [it] the aggregate reduction in work hours is in lieu of layoffs; (2) provides an estimate of the number of employees who would have been laid off in the absence of the program; and (3) certifies that the employer will not hire additional ¹[part-time or full-time]¹ employees while short-time benefits are being paid;

b. ¹[Agrees with] Certifies to¹ the division ¹[not to reduce] that¹ health insurance or pension coverage, paid time off, or other benefits¹, including retirement benefits under a defined benefit plan, as defined in section 414(j) of the Internal Revenue Code (26 U.S.C. 414(j)), or employer contributions under a defined contribution plan, as defined in section 414(i) of the Internal Revenue Code (26 U.S.C. 414(i)), will continue to be¹ provided to ¹[participating employees before the application was made, with the benefits continuing to be provided under the same terms and conditions as if the participating employees were working their usual weekly hours, except that employer contributions to a defined contribution plan, as defined in section 414(i) of the Internal Revenue Code (26 U.S.C. 414(i)), may be reduced in proportion to the reduction of weekly hours and except that a percentage reduction may be made to any benefit of a participating employee if an equivalent percentage reduction is made simultaneously to the benefits of all non-participating employees in the affected unit, [or] and agrees not to] any employee whose workweek is reduced under the program that those benefits will continue to be provided to employees participating in the program under the same terms and conditions as though the workweek of the employee had not been reduced or to the same extent as other employees not participating in the program, except that employer contributions to a defined contribution plan, as defined in section 414(i) of the Internal Revenue Code (26 U.S.C. 414(i)), may be reduced in proportion to the reduction of weekly hours, and certifies to the division that the employer will not¹ make unreasonable revisions of workforce productivity standards;

c. Certifies to the division that any collective bargaining agent representing the employees has entered into a written agreement with the employer regarding the terms of the program, including terms regarding attendance in training programs while receiving short-time benefits, and provides a copy of the agreement to the division; [and]

d. Provides, in the application, the effective date and duration of the program, a description of the affected unit or units covered by the program, including the number of ¹[part-time and full-time]¹ employees in each unit, the percentage of employees in the affected unit covered by the program, identification of each individual employee in the affected unit by name, social security number, and the employer’s unemployment tax account number and any other information required by the division to identify program participants;

e. Provides, in the application, a description of how the employees in the affected units will be notified of the employer’s participation in the shared work program if the application is approved, including the means of notification for employees who are members of collective bargaining units and employees who are not members of a collective bargaining unit;

f. Identifies the usual weekly hours of work for the employees of the affected unit and the specific percentage by which their hours will be reduced during all weeks covered by the program;

g. Certifies that participation in the program and its implementation is consistent with the employer’s obligations under all applicable federal and State laws; and

h. Agrees to provide the division with [whatever] any reports or other information, including access to employer records, the division deems necessary to administer the shared work program and monitor compliance with all agreements and certifications required pursuant to this section.

The division shall approve or disapprove the program in writing not more than 60 days after the receipt of the application and promptly communicate the decision to the employer. A decision disapproving the application shall clearly identify the reasons for the disapproval. The disapproval shall be final, but the employer shall be permitted to submit another application for approval of a plan not earlier than 60 days from the date of disapproval.

(cf: P.L.2011, c.154, s.2)

3. Section 3 of P.L.2011, c.154 (C.43:21-20.5) is amended to read as follows:

3. a. The division, on its own initiative or upon request of the affected unit’s employees, may ¹[, for good cause and at any time,]¹ revoke approval of an employer's application previously granted [for good cause shown, including] ¹[. Good cause shall include, but not be limited to, an unreasonable revision of productivity standards for the affected unit or] for¹ any ¹[other]¹ failure to comply with any agreement or certification required pursuant to section 2 of this act, or any other conduct or occurrences which the division determines to defeat the purpose, intent and effective operation of a shared work program. The notice of revocation shall be in writing and shall specify the reasons for the revocation and the date on which the revocation is effective.

b. An employer may request modifications of an approved shared work program by filing with the division a written request identifying the specific proposed modifications and explaining the need for the modifications. The division shall approve or disapprove the modifications within 30 days and promptly communicate to the employer the division’s decision and the date on which the modification will take effect. The employer is not required to obtain division approval to make a plan modification which is not substantial, but is required to provide prompt, written notice of the modification to the division, which shall require the employer to request division approval of the modification if the division finds the modification to be substantial. The division may terminate the program if the employer fails to provide the notice required by this subsection ¹[,] .¹

(cf: P.L.2011, c.154, s.3)

4. Section 4 of P.L.2011, c.154 (C.43:21-20.6) is amended to read as follows:

4. An individual who is employed by an employer with a shared work program approved by the division shall be eligible for short-time benefits during a week if:

a. The individual was employed by the employer for not less than 1,500 hours during the individual's base year;

b. The individual works for the employer at an affected unit less than the individual's ¹[normal full-time] usual weekly¹ hours ¹[during the week] of work¹, and the employer has reduced the individual's weekly hours of work pursuant to a shared work program in effect during that week and approved by the division pursuant to section 2 of this act;

c. The percentage of the reduction of the individual's work hours below the individual's ¹[normal full-time] usual weekly¹ hours ¹[during a week] of work¹ is not less than 10% and not more than 60%, with a corresponding reduction of wages;

d. The individual would be eligible for unemployment benefits other than short-time benefits during the week, if the individual was entirely unemployed during that week and applied for unemployment benefits other than short-time benefits; and

e. During the week, the individual is able to work and is available ¹[to work] for¹ the individual's ¹[normal full-time] usual weekly¹ hours ¹[for] of work with¹ the shared work employer or is ¹[attending] participating in¹ a training program ¹[which is in compliance with the provisions of paragraph (4) of] approved by the division, including division-approved employer-sponsored training, division-approved training funded under the Workforce Investment Act of 1998, Pub.L.105-220 (29 U.S.C. s.2801 et seq.) or the Workforce Development Partnership program established pursuant to section 4 of P.L.1992, c.43 (C.34:15D-4), or any other training approved by the division pursuant to¹ subsection (c) of R.S.43:21-4 ¹[and the agreements and certifications required pursuant to the provisions of section 2 of this act]¹.

¹If the individual complies with the requirements of subsection e. of this section, the individual shall not be subject to any other requirement of the "unemployment compensation law," R.S.43:21-1 et seq., to be available for work and actively seeking work.¹

(cf: P.L.2011, c.154, s.4)

5. Section 5 of P.L.2011, c.154 (C.43:21-20.7) is amended to read as follows:

5. The amount of short-time benefits paid to an eligible individual shall, for any week, be equal to the individual's weekly benefit rate multiplied by the percentage of reduction of his wages resulting from reduced hours of work. The weekly benefit amount shall be rounded off to the nearest dollar. An individual shall not be paid short-time benefits [in excess of 26], for more than 52 weeks ¹[during a benefit year]¹[, but the weeks] ¹under a shared work program¹. Weeks of short-time benefits may be nonconsecutive. An individual shall not receive short-time benefits during any benefit week in which the individual receives any other unemployment benefits, with respect to the employment with the shared work employer.

Total unemployment benefits paid to an individual during any benefit year, including short-time benefits and all other unemployment benefits, shall not exceed the maximum amount to which the individual is entitled for all unemployment benefits other than short-time benefits.

The following provision shall apply to an individual who is employed by both a shared work employer and another employer during weeks covered by a shared work program:

a. If combined hours of work in a week for both employers result in a reduction of less than 10% of the usual weekly hours of work with the shared work employer, the individual shall not be entitled to benefits under the ¹[share] shared¹ work program;

b. If combined hours of work in a week for both employers result in a reduction of 10% or more of the usual weekly hours of work with the shared work employer, the short-time benefit payable to the individual shall be reduced for that week and be determined by multiplying the weekly unemployment benefit amount for a week of total unemployment by the percentage by which the combined hours of work have been reduced by 10% or more of the ¹[individuals] individual's¹ usual weekly hours of work;

c. If the individual worked a reduced percentage of the usual weekly hours of work for the shared work employer and is available for all of his usual hours of work with the shared work employer, and the individual did not work any hours for the other employer, either because of a lack of work with that employer or because the individual is excused from work with the other employer, the individual shall be eligible for short-time benefits for that week.

An individual who is not provided any work during a week by a shared work employer or any other employer and is otherwise eligible for unemployment benefits shall be eligible for the full amount of regular unemployment benefits to which the individual otherwise would be eligible. An individual who is not provided any work during a week by a shared work employer, but who works for another employer and is otherwise eligible for unemployment benefits shall be eligible for regular unemployment benefits for that week subject to the disqualifying income and other provision applicable to claims for regular unemployment benefits.

An individual who has received all of the short-time benefits or a combination of all of the short-time benefits and regular unemployment benefits available in a benefit year shall be considered to be an exhaustee for the purposes of any extended benefits provided pursuant to the provisions of the “Extended Benefits Law,” sections 5 through 11 of P.L.1970, c.324 (C.43:21-24.11 et seq.), and, if otherwise eligible under those provisions, shall be eligible to receive extended benefits.

(cf: P.L.2011, c.154, s.5)

6. Section 6 of P.L.2011, c.154 (C.43:21-20.8) is amended to read as follows:

6. A shared work program and payment of short-time benefits to individuals under the program shall [begin with the first week following approval of an application by] go into effect on the date mutually agreed upon by employer and the division [or the first week specified by the employer, whichever is later]. A shared work program shall expire on the date specified in the notice of approval, which shall be either the date at the end of the 12th full calendar month after its effective date or an earlier date mutually agreed upon by the employer and the division. The program shall also expire upon the date of any revocation of approval of the program by the division. An employer of an approved program may terminate the program at any time upon written notice to the division, and the division shall notify participating employees of the affected unit of the termination. If a shared work program expires or the employer terminates the program, the employer may, at any time after the expiration or termination date, submit a new application for division approval of another shared work program.

(cf: P.L.2011, c.154, s.6)

¹7. Section 9 of P.L.2011, c.154 (C. 43:21-20.11) is amended to read as follows:

9. If the United States Department of Labor finds any provision of this act to be in violation of federal law, [all provisions] that provision of this act shall be inoperative.¹

(cf: P.L.2011, c.154, s.9)

¹[7.] 8.¹ This act shall take effect immediately.