Florida Senate - 2019                              CS for SB 990
       
       
        
       By the Committee on Rules; and Senators Gibson, Berman, and
       Rodriguez
       
       
       
       
       595-04580-19                                           2019990c1
    1                        A bill to be entitled                      
    2         An act relating to unemployment compensation; amending
    3         s. 443.101, F.S.; making editorial changes;
    4         prohibiting certain victims of domestic violence from
    5         being disqualified for benefits for voluntarily
    6         leaving work; prohibiting the employment record of an
    7         employing unit from being charged in certain
    8         circumstances; amending s. 443.131, F.S.; adding a
    9         circumstance under which the employment record of an
   10         employing unit may not be charged; providing an
   11         effective date.
   12          
   13  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
   14  
   15         Section 1. Paragraph (a) of subsection (1) of section
   16  443.101, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:
   17         443.101 Disqualification for benefits.—An individual shall
   18  be disqualified for benefits:
   19         (1)(a) For the week in which he or she has voluntarily left
   20  work without good cause attributable to his or her employing
   21  unit or for the week in which he or she has been discharged by
   22  the employing unit for misconduct connected with his or her
   23  work, based on a finding by the Department of Economic
   24  Opportunity. As used in this paragraph, the term “work” means
   25  any work, whether full-time, part-time, or temporary.
   26         1. Disqualification for voluntarily quitting continues for
   27  the full period of unemployment next ensuing after the
   28  individual has left his or her full-time, part-time, or
   29  temporary work voluntarily without good cause and until the
   30  individual has earned income equal to or greater than 17 times
   31  his or her weekly benefit amount. As used in this subsection,
   32  the term “good cause” includes only that cause attributable to
   33  the employing unit which would compel a reasonable employee to
   34  cease working or attributable to the individual’s illness or
   35  disability requiring separation from his or her work. Any other
   36  disqualification may not be imposed.
   37         2. An individual is not disqualified under this subsection
   38  for:
   39         a. Voluntarily leaving temporary work to return immediately
   40  when called to work by the permanent employing unit that
   41  temporarily terminated his or her work within the previous 6
   42  calendar months;
   43         b., or for Voluntarily leaving work to relocate as a
   44  result of his or her military-connected spouse’s permanent
   45  change of station orders, activation orders, or unit deployment
   46  orders; or
   47         c.Voluntarily leaving work if he or she proves that his or
   48  her discontinued employment is a direct result of circumstances
   49  related to domestic violence as defined in s. 741.28. An
   50  individual who voluntarily leaves work under this sub
   51  subparagraph must:
   52         (I)Make reasonable efforts to preserve employment, unless
   53  the individual establishes that such remedies are likely to be
   54  futile or to increase the risk of future incidents of domestic
   55  violence. Such efforts may include seeking a protective
   56  injunction, relocating to a secure place, or seeking reasonable
   57  accommodation from the employing unit, such as a transfer or
   58  change of assignment;
   59         (II)Provide evidence such as an injunction, a protective
   60  order, or other documentation authorized by state law which
   61  reasonably proves that domestic violence has occurred; and
   62         (III)Reasonably believe that he or she is likely to be the
   63  victim of a future act of domestic violence at, in transit to,
   64  or departing from his or her place of employment. An individual
   65  who is otherwise eligible for benefits under this sub
   66  subparagraph is ineligible for each week that he or she no
   67  longer meets such criteria or refuses a reasonable accommodation
   68  offered in good faith by his or her employing unit.
   69         3.The employment record of an employing unit may not be
   70  charged for the payment of benefits to an individual who has
   71  voluntarily left work under sub-subparagraph 2.c.
   72         4.2. Disqualification for being discharged for misconduct
   73  connected with his or her work continues for the full period of
   74  unemployment next ensuing after having been discharged and until
   75  the individual is reemployed and has earned income of at least
   76  17 times his or her weekly benefit amount and for not more than
   77  52 weeks immediately following that week, as determined by the
   78  department in each case according to the circumstances or the
   79  seriousness of the misconduct, under the department’s rules
   80  adopted for determining determinations of disqualification for
   81  benefits for misconduct.
   82         5.3. If an individual has provided notification to the
   83  employing unit of his or her intent to voluntarily leave work
   84  and the employing unit discharges the individual for reasons
   85  other than misconduct before the date the voluntary quit was to
   86  take effect, the individual, if otherwise entitled, shall
   87  receive benefits from the date of the employer’s discharge until
   88  the effective date of his or her voluntary quit.
   89         6.4. If an individual is notified by the employing unit of
   90  the employer’s intent to discharge the individual for reasons
   91  other than misconduct and the individual quits without good
   92  cause before the date the discharge was to take effect, the
   93  claimant is ineligible for benefits pursuant to s. 443.091(1)(d)
   94  for failing to be available for work for the week or weeks of
   95  unemployment occurring before the effective date of the
   96  discharge.
   97         Section 2. Paragraph (a) of subsection (3) of section
   98  443.131, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:
   99         443.131 Contributions.—
  100         (3) VARIATION OF CONTRIBUTION RATES BASED ON BENEFIT
  101  EXPERIENCE.—
  102         (a) Employment records.—The regular and short-time
  103  compensation benefits paid to an eligible individual shall be
  104  charged to the employment record of each employer who paid the
  105  individual wages of at least $100 during the individual’s base
  106  period in proportion to the total wages paid by all employers
  107  who paid the individual wages during the individual’s base
  108  period. Benefits may not be charged to the employment record of
  109  an employer who furnishes part-time work to an individual who,
  110  because of loss of employment with one or more other employers,
  111  is eligible for partial benefits while being furnished part-time
  112  work by the employer on substantially the same basis and in
  113  substantially the same amount as the individual’s employment
  114  during his or her base period, regardless of whether this part
  115  time work is simultaneous or successive to the individual’s lost
  116  employment. Further, as provided in s. 443.151(3), benefits may
  117  not be charged to the employment record of an employer who
  118  furnishes the Department of Economic Opportunity with notice, as
  119  prescribed in rules of the department, that any of the following
  120  apply:
  121         1. If an individual leaves his or her work without good
  122  cause attributable to the employer or is discharged by the
  123  employer for misconduct connected with his or her work, benefits
  124  subsequently paid to the individual based on wages paid by the
  125  employer before the separation may not be charged to the
  126  employment record of the employer.
  127         2. If an individual is discharged by the employer for
  128  unsatisfactory performance during an initial employment
  129  probationary period, benefits subsequently paid to the
  130  individual based on wages paid during the probationary period by
  131  the employer before the separation may not be charged to the
  132  employer’s employment record. As used in this subparagraph, the
  133  term “initial employment probationary period” means an
  134  established probationary plan that applies to all employees or a
  135  specific group of employees and that does not exceed 90 calendar
  136  days following the first day a new employee begins work. The
  137  employee must be informed of the probationary period within the
  138  first 7 days of work. The employer must demonstrate by
  139  conclusive evidence that the individual was separated because of
  140  unsatisfactory work performance and not because of lack of work
  141  due to temporary, seasonal, casual, or other similar employment
  142  that is not of a regular, permanent, and year-round nature.
  143         3. Benefits subsequently paid to an individual after his or
  144  her refusal without good cause to accept suitable work from an
  145  employer may not be charged to the employment record of the
  146  employer if any part of those benefits are based on wages paid
  147  by the employer before the individual’s refusal to accept
  148  suitable work. As used in this subparagraph, the term “good
  149  cause” does not include distance to employment caused by a
  150  change of residence by the individual. The department shall
  151  adopt rules prescribing for the payment of all benefits whether
  152  this subparagraph applies regardless of whether a
  153  disqualification under s. 443.101 applies to the claim.
  154         4. If an individual is separated from work as a direct
  155  result of a natural disaster declared under the Robert T.
  156  Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act, 42 U.S.C.
  157  ss. 5121 et seq., benefits subsequently paid to the individual
  158  based on wages paid by the employer before the separation may
  159  not be charged to the employment record of the employer.
  160         5. If an individual is separated from work as a direct
  161  result of an oil spill, terrorist attack, or other similar
  162  disaster of national significance not subject to a declaration
  163  under the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency
  164  Assistance Act, benefits subsequently paid to the individual
  165  based on wages paid by the employer before the separation may
  166  not be charged to the employment record of the employer.
  167         6.If an individual is separated from work as a direct
  168  result of domestic violence and meets all requirements in s.
  169  443.101(1)(a)2.c., benefits subsequently paid to the individual
  170  based on wages paid by the employer before separation may not be
  171  charged to the employment record of the employer.
  172         Section 3. This act shall take effect July 1, 2019.