SB 237

Unemployment insurance

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

which is administered by the Department of Workforce Development. Significant

changes include all of the following:

Misconduct

Currently, if an employee is discharged for misconduct connected with his or her

employment, the employee is ineligible to receive UI benefits until certain

requalification criteria are satisfied. In addition, all wages earned with the employer

that discharges the employee are excluded in determining the amount of any future

benefits to which the employee is entitled. Current law provides a general definition

of misconduct and also specifies a number of specific actions that constitute

misconduct. The bill does all of the following with respect to what is considered

misconduct:

1. Current law specifically provides that misconduct includes theft of an

employer's property or services with intent to deprive the employer of the property

or services permanently, theft of currency of any value, felonious conduct connected

with an employee's employment with his or her employer, or intentional or negligent

conduct by an employee that causes substantial damage to his or her employer's

property. The bill does the following:

a. Eliminates the requirement that the employee have intent to deprive the

employer of the property or services permanently.

b. Provides that intentional or negligent conduct by an employee that causes

the destruction of an employer's records is also considered misconduct.

c. Adds unauthorized possession of an employer's property, theft or

unauthorized distribution of an employer's confidential or proprietary information,

and use of an employer's credit card or other financial instrument for an

unauthorized or nonbusiness purpose without prior approval from the employer to

the list of what is considered misconduct.

2. Current law specifically provides that misconduct includes absenteeism by

an employee on more than two occasions within the 120-day period before the date

of the employee's termination, unless otherwise specified by his or her employer in

an employment manual of which the employee has acknowledged receipt with his or

her signature, or excessive tardiness by an employee in violation of a policy of the

employer that has been communicated to the employee, if the employee does not

provide to his or her employer both notice and one or more valid reasons for the

absenteeism or tardiness.

The bill instead provides that misconduct includes both of the following: 1) a

violation of an employer's reasonable policy that covers employee absenteeism,

tardiness, or both and that results in an employee's termination, if that termination

is in accordance with that policy and the policy is specified by the employer in an