By: Vo (Senate Sponsor - Eltife) H.B. No. 2035
(In the Senate - Received from the House April 15, 2013;
April 17, 2013, read first time and referred to Committee on
Administration; April 23, 2013, reported favorably by the
following vote: Yeas 4, Nays 0; April 23, 2013, sent to printer.)
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to the shared work unemployment compensation program.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Section 204.022, Labor Code, is amended by
adding Subsection (f) to read as follows:
(f) Shared work benefits paid under Chapter 215 may not be
charged to the account of an employer if the benefits are reimbursed
by the federal government under the federal Layoff Prevention Act
of 2012 (Pub. L. No. 112-96, Subtitle D, Title II).
SECTION 2. Section 215.001, Labor Code, is amended by
amending Subdivision (2) and adding Subdivision (9) to read as
follows:
(2) "Fringe benefit" means health insurance, a
retirement benefit received under a defined benefit plan, as
defined by 26 U.S.C. Section 414(j), or under a defined
contribution plan, as defined by 26 U.S.C. Section 414(i) [pension
plan], a paid vacation day, a paid holiday, sick leave, or any other
similar employee benefit provided by an employer.
(9) "Training" means commission-approved voluntary
training sponsored by an employer or funded under the Workforce
Investment Act of 1998 (29 U.S.C. Section 2801 et seq.) that is
designed to enhance a participant's job skills.
SECTION 3. Section 215.022, Labor Code, is amended to read
as follows:
Sec. 215.022. REQUIREMENTS OF SHARED WORK PLAN. (a) The
commission may approve a shared work plan if:
(1) the plan:
(A) applies to and identifies a specific affected
unit;
(B) identifies the employees in the affected unit
by name and social security number and describes how the employees
will be notified in advance of the plan, if feasible;
(C) provides an estimate of the number of
employees who would be laid off if the employer does not participate
in the shared work plan;
(D) [(C)] reduces the normal weekly hours of work
for an employee in the affected unit by at least 10 percent but not
more than 40 percent;
(E) [(D)] applies to at least 10 percent of the
employees in the affected unit; and
(F) permits eligible employees to participate in
training [(E) describes the manner in which the participating
employer treats the fringe benefits of each employee in the
affected unit];
(2) the employer certifies that the implementation of
a shared work plan and the resulting reduction in work hours is in
lieu of [temporary] layoffs that would:
(A) affect at least 10 percent of the employees
in the affected unit; and
(B) result in an equivalent reduction in work
hours; [and]
(3) the employer certifies that:
(A) if the employer currently provides fringe
benefits, the fringe benefits continue for employees in the
affected unit unless those benefits are not continued for employees
not participating in the shared work plan; and
(B) participation in the shared work plan is
consistent with the employer's obligations under state and federal
law; and
(4) the employer agrees to furnish the commission
reports relating to the operation of the plan as requested by the
commission and any other information the United States secretary of
labor determines is appropriate.
(b) A shared work plan may not be implemented to subsidize a
seasonal employer during the off-season [or to subsidize an
employer who traditionally has used part-time employees].
SECTION 4. The change in law made by this Act applies only
to a shared work plan submitted by an employer to the Texas
Workforce Commission on or after the effective date of this Act. A
shared work plan submitted before the effective date of this Act is
governed by the law in effect on the date the plan was submitted,
and the former law is continued in effect for that purpose.
SECTION 5. This Act takes effect September 1, 2013.
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