President Obama Encourages Unemployment Compensation Changes

Posted on May 8, 2009 by Liz Overton

Today President Obama announced a plan that will encourage unemployed workers to enroll in educational and retraining programs.  The President's plan encourages states to update their unemployment compensation rules so that unemployed workers taking advantage of the program do not lose their unemployment compensation benefits.  Iowa's current unemployment compensation scheme has such a speed-bump.

Under Iowa Code § 96.4 an unemployed individual is eligible for unemployment compensation benefits if the individual is "able to work, is available for work, and is earnestly and actively seeking work."  The Iowa Administrative Code state that full-time students "devoting the major portion of their time and effort to their studies are not "available" for work as required by the Iowa Code unless they are "available to the same degree and to the same extent as they accrued wage credits."  Thus, they are ineligible to receive unemployment benefits.  Exceptions include an indivdual in training with the approval of the director and training approved under 19 U.S.C. § 2296(a), the Trade Act of 1974, Relief from Injury Caused by Import Competition.

President Obama's plan only "strongly encourages" states to alter ther current rules.  With Iowa's unemployment rate still approximately 3.3% below the national rate, (according to March 2009 rates) I don't anticipate many changes in Iowa's rules in the near future.

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Unemployment Benefits for Iowans

Posted on October 21, 2008 by Liz Overton

An article in the Des Moines Register today reported that the percentage of unemployed Iowans fell to 4.2% in September. This is down 0.3% from August and up 0.4% from a year ago. The national unemployment rate is 6.1%. While Iowans seem to be better off than the rest of the country, Iowans in the 4.2% may be asking themselves “now what?”

 

If you are in the 4.2% of the population file an unemployment claim with Iowa Workforce Development. You may file a claim online or in person at your local IWD Center. The IWD has an informative guide which explains general questions about unemployment benefits. Benefit amounts depend on the amount of gross wages and the number of dependents you have. The maximum weekly benefit one can receive ranges from $361.00-$443.00.

 

To be eligible for benefits you must have lost your job through no fault of your own. In general, this means you must not have been discharged for misconduct. Misconduct is a defined term under the Iowa Administrative Code and is a source of a volume of case law.

During your benefits period you need to continually seek new employment. IWD will require you to submit a certain number of applications per week to employers. There are some exceptions, however, in most cases you will need to be actively seeking a new position. If you fail to seek new employment your benefits may cease. Your benefits may also cease if you fail to accept an offer of employment for a suitable position.

 

Unemployment benefits may not put you in a new position, but do provide some relief while finding a new position.

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