The unemployment insurance (UI) system, administered by the Employment Security Department (ESD), is designed to provide partial wage replacement for unemployed workers.  A worker is eligible to receive benefits if he or she:  worked at least 680 hours in covered employment in his or her base year; was separated from employment through no fault of his or her own or quit work for good cause; and is available to work and is actively searching for suitable work.

To be considered available for work, the worker must be available for work for at least 40 hours during the week during the hours customary for his or her trade or occupation, and must be willing to accept suitable full-time, part-time, and temporary work during those hours.  However, this requirement does not apply to part-time workers.  A person is a part-time worker if he or she was employed for at least 40 works in the base year but did not earn wages for more than 17 hours per week in any week.  A part-time worker must be available for and willing to accept work of 17 or fewer hours per week, and may otherwise refuse any job requiring 18 or more hours per week.

The amount of an eligible worker's benefits is calculated based on his or her earnings in the prior base year and then adjusted based on a statutory formula.  The current maximum weekly benefit amount is $1,079.  The UI system is funded by taxes and payments made by employers.  Most employers are contribution-paying employers, referred to as taxable employers.  For this category, benefits are financed through employer contributions, referred to as payroll taxes.  An employer's contributions are determined by multiple factors, including an experience rating based on the benefits paid to its employees.  State and local governments, federally recognized tribes, and some nonprofit organizations qualify as reimbursable employers.  For reimbursable employers, the employer reimburses the ESD for benefits actually paid to separated employees instead of paying payroll taxes.

For the provisions pertaining to part-time workers, the substitute bill:

• modifies the definition of part-time worker to mean an individual who worked, on average, less than 35 hours per week during their base year (rather than worked an average number of weekly hours that the employer considers to be less than full time); and
• provides that the worker may not be denied benefits if the worker is available for and seeks work for a number of hours per week that is equal to or more than the worker's average number of weekly hours in their base year (rather than an average number of weekly hours that is comparable to or more than the worker's average number of weekly hours in their base year).

For the provisions pertaining to full-time workers who become unable to work full time, the substitute bill: 

• removes from the underlying bill the following circumstances that would qualify the worker to switch to less than full-time work:  the individual's disability; and "other circumstance beyond the individual's control"; and
• provides that the worker must be available for and seek work that is for at least 20 hours per week (rather than an average number of 20 or more weekly hours).

The substitute bill adds amendatory provisions to align other requirements in the Employment Security Act with the substitute bill.