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FEB. 6, 2009:NWLP 2/3/09 10:12 AM Page 3 Not your grandfather’s workforce, but it’s still his unemployment insurance system in Oregon By JOY MARGHEIM Let’s say you often bike to work and your Oldsmobile stays in the garage half the work week. On a day when you drive, you get into an accident. Al- though you dutifully pay insurance every month, your claim gets denied. “Sorry,” your insurer says, “you don’t drive enough.” It’s crazy, right? But that scenario is not too different from what many laid- off Oregon workers experience when attempting to collect unemployment in- surance (UI) benefits. Oregon’s antiquated UI program of- ten excludes part-time and temporary workers whose employers paid into the system on their behalf. Modernizing Witt sponsors bill allowing UI aid for part-timers SALEM — Oregon State Rep Brad Witt is sponsoring a bill that would allow unemployment insur- ance benefits for part-time workers. Witt, a union rep with United Food and Commercial Workers Lo- cal 555 and a former secretary-treas- urer of the Oregon AFL-CIO, sits on the Business and Labor Committee. “The bill is both an economic stimulus and a safety net issue for those who often have to work two or more part-time jobs,” Witt said. “This will make an important con- tribution towards breaking the econ- omy’s downward spiral caused in part by inadequate consumer spend- ing. It is also a basic fairness issue: Part-time employees pay into the system just like full time employees. Unemployment insurance is well funded in Oregon so we can fund this and still maintain our reserves.” the program so that it better serves to- day’s workforce is more urgent today, as a severe recession leaves more Ore- gonians without work. UI is good for workers, businesses and employers. The temporary wage benefits help keep the families of laid- off workers afloat. Local merchants are better off when unemployed workers continue spending on housing, gro- ceries and other basic needs. And once business conditions improve, it helps employers call back the experienced workers they need. To be more effective, however, the system must be updated to reflect changes in the workforce. Established in 1935, UI was designed when the la- bor force mostly consisted of male breadwinners who worked full time. Today’s workplace looks vastly differ- ent, with more women, part-time and temporary workers. Currently, laid-off part-time work- ers can collect unemployment benefits only if they are willing to accept full- time work. For many, full-time work is not an option — if they are balancing work with caretaking responsibilities, for example. Part-time workers are a group that is too big to leave out. One in four Ore- gon workers labors part time, and those workers’employers pay into the system on their behalf, just as they do for full- time workers. UI rules also disregard up to six months of recent earnings when figur- ing eligibility. Therefore, Oregonians who work intermittently or have re- cently returned to work after a period of unemployment or caretaking duties may have difficulty qualifying. These and other UI rules shrink the pool of workers covered. Today, only about half of unemployed Oregonians collect UI benefits. That’s bad news for the 46,700 Ore- gonians who have lost their job since February of 2008, when the downturn began. According to the latest data from the Oregon Employment Department, state unemployment stands at 9 percent, its highest level since April 1985. Now is a good time for Oregon to upgrade its UI system, not only be- cause of rising unemployment but also to take advantage of funding that may come out of Washington, D.C. Con- gress is considering an economic stim- ulus measure that would offer an in- centive for states to modernize their UI programs. By modernizing, Oregon would get about $91 million from the feds, according to the National Em- ployment Law Project. To qualify for the federal funding, however, Oregon would need to change its UI eligibility criteria to allow work- ers to count more of their recent work experience. Twenty other states and the District of the Columbia already have enacted this improvement, which helps workers who recently entered the work force or who work intermittently to qualify for unemployment benefits. Most of those who would benefit are low-wage workers. Oregon can improve UI further. It can eliminate barriers for part-time workers, allow workers to get their ben- efits immediately rather than having to wait a week for their first check, boost the benefits for workers who have chil- dren to support, and permit low-wage workers to complete a job training pro- gram while they collect unemployment benefits. Other states have taken those steps, and so should Oregon. Just as you don’t drive your grand- father’s Oldsmobile, Oregonians shouldn’t be stuck with their grandfa- thers’ unemployment insurance sys- tem. The time to bring Oregon’s UI system to the 21st century is now. (Editor’s Note: Joy Margheim is a policy analyst with the Oregon Center for Public Policy. She can be reached at jmargheim@ocpp.org.) AFSCME #2067 donates $20,000 to help elderly, poor heat homes SALEM — Members of AFSCME Local 2067 donated $20,000 to four en- ergy assistance agencies that help the elderly and other low-income residents pay their winter heating and water bills. Donations of $5,000 each went to Oregon HEAT, a non-profit assistance agency; Salem Electric, Mid- Willamette Valley Community Action, and Salem’s water and sewer depart- ment. AFSCME Local 2067 represents over 600 members at the City of Salem. Since Dec. 1, the local also made cash donations of $20,000 to various branches of the Oregon Food Bank net- work. “We believe it’s very important for us to be good citizens and participants in our community,” Local 2067 Presi- dent Jack Tucker told e-lert, an online newsletter of Oregon AFSCME Coun- cil 75. “City employees are real people, too — we live in the local communities, we pay taxes and we have a vested in- terest in making our communities bet- ter. As a group, we’re always looking for ways to give back to our commu- nity. It’s a high priority for this active group of union members.” Tucker works in the City of Salem’s Public Works Department. (International Standard Serial Number 0894-444X) Established in 1900 at Portland, Oregon as a voice of the labor movement. 4275 NE Halsey St., P.O. Box 13150, Portland, Ore. 97213 Telephone: (503) 288-3311 Editor: Michael Gutwig Staff: Don McIntosh, Cheri Rice Published on a semi-monthly basis on the first and third Fridays of each month by the Oregon Labor Press Publishing Co. Inc., a non- profit corporation owned by 20 unions and councils including the Oregon AFL-CIO. Serving more than 120 union organizations in Ore- gon and SW Washington. Subscriptions $13.75 per year for union members. Group rates available to trade union organizations. PERIODICALS POSTAGE PAID AT PORTLAND, OREGON. CHANGE OF ADDRESS NOTICE: Three weeks are required for a change of address. When ordering a change, please give your old and new addresses and the name and number of your local union. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to NORTHWEST LABOR PRESS, P.O. BOX 13150, PORTLAND, OR 97213-0150 FEBRUARY 6, 2009 NORTHWEST LABOR PRESS PAGE 3
