AB 487

This bill makes various changes in the unemployment insurance (UI) law.

Significant provisions include:

Benefit changes

Disqualification for full-time work

Currently, if a claimant receives wages or certain other amounts treated as

wages from an employer who paid at least 80 percent of the claimant's wages in his

or her base period (period preceding a claim during which benefit rights accrue) for

any week, the claimant is not eligible to receive benefits for that week if the claimant

works for at least 35 hours for that employer in that week and receives pay at not less

than the rate of pay that the claimant received during the calendar quarter in his or

her base period in which the claimant received his or her highest wages, or the

claimant receives certain other payments from that employer for that week that

alone or in combination with any paid wages equal at least the pay the claimant

would have received for 35 hours of work.

This bill provides that a claimant is subject to this disqualifier for any week if

the claimant receives wages or certain other amounts treated as wages from such an

employer for full-time work for that week. The bill defines "full-time work" as work

performed for 32 or more hours per week.

Voluntary termination of work

Currently, if an employee voluntarily terminates his or her work with an

employer, the employee is generally ineligible to receive benefits until four weeks

have elapsed since the end of the week in which the termination occurs and the

employee earns wages after the week in which the termination occurs equal to at

least four times the employee's weekly benefit rate in employment covered by the

unemployment insurance law of any state or the federal government. However, an

employee may terminate his or her work and receive benefits without requalifying

under this provision if the employee terminates his or her work with good cause

attributable to his or her employer. In addition, an employee may voluntarily

terminate his or her work and receive benefits without requalifying under this

provision if: a) the work is part-time work consisting of not more than 30 hours per

week and the employee is otherwise eligible to receive benefits because of the loss of

the employee's full-time work and the loss of the full-time work makes it

economically unfeasible to continue his or her part-time work; or b) the employee

terminates his or her work in one of two or more concurrently held positions at least

one of which consists of more than 30 hours per week, if the employee terminates his

or her work before receiving notice of termination from a position which consists of

more than 30 hours per week.

This bill changes the above exceptions so that an employee may receive benefits

without requalifying if, under a), the work from which the employee terminates is

part-time work; or, under b), the work from which the employee terminates is