SCREWED: More companies resist paying jobless benefits

[radfringe]

More companies resist paying jobless benefits
PETER WHORISKEY; The Washington Post
February 12th, 2009

WASHINGTON – It’s hard enough to lose a job. But for a growing proportion of U.S. workers, the troubles really set in when they apply for unemployment benefits.

More than a quarter of people applying for unemployment compensation have their rights to the benefit challenged as employers increasingly act to block payouts to former workers.

The proportion of claims disputed by former employers and state agencies has reached record levels in recent years, according to the Labor Department numbers tallied by the Urban Institute.

Under state and federal laws, employees who are fired for misbehavior or quit voluntarily are ineligible for unemployment compensation. When jobless claims are blocked, employers save money because their unemployment insurance rates are based on the amount of the benefits their workers collect.

[woodwrite]

1. Another "dodge" accompanying this practice

Increasingly, employers,.. particularly contractors, have been deeming de facto employees to be "sub-contractors" and thereby escaping all benefits, FUTA taxes, IRS withholding, etc. But seldom could they pass the 20-question test determining actual sub-contractor status.