Unemployment Insurance is much more than just responding to claims. While claims need to be responded to completely and in a timely manner, U.I. eligibility impacts and is impacted by many other employment functions. Industrial U.I.’s unemployment consultants advise on many employment topics and questions. For example:
- How does a severance package affect a particular claimant’s eligibility for compensation benefits?
- If an employer changes an employee’s work hours, job duties, rate of pay, etc., will the employee be eligible for U.I. benefits if he or she quits rather than accept the change?
- If an employer agrees to convert a discharge into a ‘quit’ to settle a union grievance, how will that affect the claimant’s eligibility for compensation?
- If an employer reinstates an employee, how will the decision of whether to award back pay affect U.I. eligibility?
- Should a not-for-profit employer be tax-rated for benefit reimbursement and does the timing of that election or an impending layoff affect that decision?
- If a company is planning to acquire another company mid-year, does the acquiring company have to pay unemployment insurance taxes on the employees being acquired in the first year; and how does the company interact with the state taxing authority on this issue?
- Do U.I. taxes need to be paid for independent contractors; and who would be eligible to file a claim in the event that person is no longer engaged?
The specialized unemployment consultants are readily available to consult with clients on these and a host of other issues as to how they affect the unemployment insurance process.
Many of our clients use our firm as a sounding board to discuss potential disciplinary actions. While we do not represent our clients as attorneys in these matters, we have years of experience that can be helpful in evaluating such decisions. Clients also speak with our unemployment consultants on whether a particular incident will be considered misconduct if an employee is discharged and then how to proceed pre-termination to assure the greatest chance of success of a U.I. claim filing. Furthermore, we will advise when we think labor counsel needs to be consulted and will work with labor counsel as the need arises.