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Unemployment insurance troubles

Published (2/11/2010)
By Nick Busse
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Dawn Shea, front, a Northwest Airlines cabin attendant, tells of her experience applying for unemployment during a Feb. 9 hearing of the House Higher Education and Workforce Development Finance and Policy Division. Other airline employees who testified are, background from left, Laurie Gandrud, Mike Ewald and Amy Lusty. (Photo by Tom Olmscheid)Confusing application forms, unfair benefits and a frustrating appeals process were some of the complaints leveled against the state’s unemployment insurance system to a House division.

In addition to taking public testimony, members of the House Higher Education and Workforce Development Finance and Policy Division also aired some of their own concerns about UI benefits Feb. 9. No action was taken.

“Our office has been getting a number of calls from all over — and I know other legislators have been getting calls,” said Rep. Tom Rukavina (DFL-Virginia), division chairman.

Paul Marfiz, a commercial painter, described a UI system that penalizes workers for taking work when they can get it. He said his benefits dropped from $566 a week to $377 a week because he took occasional painting jobs. Had he not worked, a federal unemployment extension would have provided him with more benefits.

“At $377, it’s tough to make the bills. And if I work less this year, it’s going to go down even more. So my hands are tied. I don’t know what else to do,” Marfiz said.

Meanwhile, a group of flight attendants for Northwest Airlines (recently merged with Delta) on a special program that allows them to collect UI benefits while on voluntary furloughs described some of their own problems with the system.

Laurie Gandrud, a council representative for the Association of Flight Attendants, said some flight attendants in the program were forced to go through the full UI appeals process after simple mistakes like checking a wrong box caused their applications to be denied.

“It might have been easier and less expensive if the applicants could have just corrected their mistakes,” she said.

Lee Nelson, director of legal affairs for the state’s UI program, said the amount of UI benefits received by an applicant has been determined the same way since 1936, and is defined by federal law. As to the flight attendants’ complaints, he said the appeals process is necessary because it forces applicants to prove their case with sworn testimony and documented evidence.

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