Oregon § 657.145 - [1977 c.447 2; repealed by 1983 c.508 14]

§ 657.145. [1977 c.447 2; repealed by 1983 c.508 14]

657.145 [1977 c.447 2; repealed by 1983 c.508 14]

657.146 Withholding from benefits for tax purposes; rules. (1) A claimant may elect to have an amount withheld from benefits otherwise payable to the claimant.

(2) An election made under this section shall be on such form and in such manner as prescribed by the Employment Department.

(3) A claimant making an election under this section may terminate the election at any time.

(4) The amount to be withheld by the Employment Department from a payment of benefits to a claimant making the election under this section shall be the total of:

(a) The amount determined under the rules of the federal Internal Revenue Code relating to the voluntary withholding of amounts from unemployment benefits, for federal income tax purposes; and

(b) An amount equal to six percent of the payment to which the claimant would be entitled but for the election made under this section, for state income tax purposes.

(5) Amounts withheld by the Employment Department pursuant to an election made under this section shall remain in the Unemployment Compensation Trust Fund established under ORS 657.805. Those amounts allocable to federal income tax withholding shall be transferred by the Employment Department to the federal Internal Revenue Service in the time and manner provided by federal law and those amounts allocable to state income tax withholding shall be transferred to the Department of Revenue in the time and manner provided by the Department of Revenue by rule. [1995 c.556 55; 1997 c.133 2]

657.148 Compliance with federal requirements for collection and payment of federal taxes. For purposes of ORS 657.144 (1) and 657.146, the Employment Department shall follow the procedures and regulations adopted by the United States Department of Labor and the federal Internal Revenue Service that relate to the collection and payment of federal income tax withholding amounts on benefits paid to individuals under this chapter. [1995 c.556 56; 1997 c.133 3]

(Generally)

657.150 Amount of benefits; length of employment and wages necessary to qualify for benefits; rules. (1) An individual shall be paid benefits for weeks during the benefit year in an amount that is to be determined by taking into account the individual s work in subject employment in the base year as provided in this section.

(2)(a) To qualify for benefits an individual must have:

(A) Worked in subject employment in the base year with total base year wages of $1,000 or more and have total base year wages equal to or in excess of one and one-half times the wages in the highest quarter of the base year; and

(B) Have earned wages in subject employment equal to six times the individual s weekly benefit amount in employment for service performed subsequent to the beginning of a preceding benefit year if benefits were paid to the individual for any week in the preceding benefit year.

(b) If the individual does not meet the requirements of paragraph (a)(A) of this subsection, the individual may qualify for benefits if the individual has worked a minimum of 500 hours in employment subject to this chapter during the base year.

(3) If the wages paid to an individual are not based upon a fixed period of time or if wages are paid at irregular intervals or in such manner as not to extend regularly over the period of employment, for the purposes of subsections (2) to (5) of this section, the individual s wages shall be allocated in accordance with rules prescribed by the Director of the Employment Department. Such rules shall, insofar as possible, produce results the same as those that would exist if the individual had been paid wages at regular intervals. The director may adopt rules to attribute hours of work to an individual if the individual is not paid on an hourly basis or if the employer does not report the number of hours worked.

(4)(a) An eligible individual s weekly benefit amount shall be 1.25 percent of the total wages paid in the individual s base year. However, such amount shall not be less than the minimum, nor more than the maximum weekly benefit amount.

(b) The minimum weekly benefit amount shall be 15 percent (0.1500) of the state average weekly covered wage for the preceding calendar year, effective for any benefit year commencing on and after the week that includes July 4, 1975, and the week that includes each July 4 thereafter.

(c) The maximum weekly benefit amount shall be:

(A) Fifty-five percent (0.5500) of the state average weekly covered wage for calendar year 1979, effective for any benefit year commencing with and after the week that includes July 4, 1980, and through any benefit year commencing with the week that includes June 27, 1981.

(B) Fifty-five percent (0.5500) of the state average weekly covered wage for calendar year 1980, effective for any benefit year commencing with and after the week that includes July 4, 1981, through any benefit year commencing with the week that includes September 27, 1981.

(C) Fifty-eight percent (0.5800) of the state average weekly covered wage for calendar year 1980, effective for any benefit year commencing with and after the week that includes October 4, 1981, through any benefit year commencing with the week that includes June 27, 1982.

(D) Sixty percent (0.6000) of the state average weekly covered wage for calendar year 1981, effective for any benefit year commencing with and after the week that includes July 4, 1982, through any benefit year commencing with the week that includes June 27, 1983.

(E) Sixty-four percent (0.6400) of the state average covered weekly wage for the preceding calendar year, effective for any benefit year commencing with and after the week that includes July 4, 1983, and the week that includes each July 4 thereafter.

(d) All weekly benefit amounts, if not a multiple of $1, shall be computed to the next lower multiple of $1.

(e) For the purposes of this subsection, the state average weekly covered wage means an amount determined by the Employment Department by dividing the total wages paid by subject employers during the year by 52 times the average monthly employment reported by subject employers for the year.

(5) Benefits paid to an eligible individual in a benefit year shall not exceed 26 times the individual s weekly benefit amount, or one-third of the base year s wages paid, whichever is the lesser. If such amount is not a multiple of $1, it shall be computed to the next lower multiple of $1.

(6) An eligible unemployed individual who has employment in any week shall have the individual s weekly benefit amount reduced, but not below zero, by the amount of earnings paid or payable that exceeds the greater of:

(a) Ten times the minimum hourly wage established by the laws of this state; or

(b) One-third of the individual s weekly benefit amount.

(7) Payment that has been, is or will be paid to an individual for a holiday or vacation shall be considered as earnings in the determination of the amount of benefits payable with respect to the week in which the holiday or vacation falls in the same manner as provided in subsection (6) of this section. However, if payment for the holiday or vacation is paid more than 45 days prior to the holiday or vacation or is delayed more than 45 days following the end of the week in which the holiday or vacation falls, the provisions of this section do not apply and previously reduced benefits shall be adjusted accordingly.

(8) Payment that has been or is paid to an individual as back pay shall be considered as earnings in the determination of the amount of benefits payable with respect to the period for which the back pay has been or is paid.

(9) Payment that has been, or will be, made to an individual as a member of a reserve component of the Armed Forces of the United States, including the organized militia of the State of Oregon, for the performance of inactive duty training shall not be considered as earnings in the determination of the amount of benefits payable. [1955 c.655 15; 1957 c.699 1; 1959 c.567 1; 1961 c.211 1; 1963 c.441 1; 1967 c.434 1; 1969 c.569 1; 1971 c.463 13; 1971 c.521 1; 1973 c.146 1; 1973 c.535 1; 1975 c.661 2; 1977 c.670 1; 1981 c.77 10; 1981 c.751 1; 1983 c.51 1; 1987 c.257 1; 1989 c.897 1; 1995 c.104 1; 1995 c.105 4; 1995 c.153 1; 2020 s.s.2 c.1 1,3; 2021 c.388 5,6]

657.152 Adjusting benefits to even dollar amounts. Notwithstanding any other provision of this chapter to the contrary, any amount of unemployment compensation payable to any individual for any week if not an even dollar amount, shall be rounded to the next lower full dollar amount. [1983 c.51 4]

657.153 Back pay not to be reduced by benefits received; exception for strikes. (1) Except as provided in subsection (2) of this section, the amount of back pay paid by an employer, or awarded by a judge or arbitrator, to an individual may not be reduced to reflect the amount of benefits that the individual received for the period for which the back pay was paid or awarded.

(2) Subsection (1) of this section does not apply to back pay paid to resolve a strike by an employer to an employee who received benefits for the period during which the strike was in active progress. [2021 c.388 8; 2025 c.432 3]

657.155 Benefit eligibility conditions; rules. (1) An unemployed individual shall be eligible to receive benefits with respect to any week only if the Director of the Employment Department finds that:

(a) The individual has registered for work at and thereafter has continued to report at an employment office in accordance with such rules as the director may prescribe. However, the director may, by rule, waive or alter either or both of the requirements of this subsection as to individuals attached to regular jobs and as to such other types of cases or situations with respect to which the director finds that compliance with such requirements would be oppressive, or would be inconsistent with the purposes of this chapter; provided, that no such rule conflicts with ORS 657.255.

(b) The individual has made a claim for benefits with respect to such week in accordance with ORS 657.260.

(c) The individual is able to work, is available for work, and is actively seeking and unable to obtain suitable work. No individual participating in a community work and training program, as defined in ORS 411.855, shall, solely by reason thereof, be unavailable for work within the meaning of this section.

(d) The individual has been unemployed for a waiting period of one week, unless the Governor has waived the required waiting period as provided in ORS 401.186.

(e) The individual is not disqualified from benefits or ineligible for benefits under any other section of this chapter.

(f) The individual is qualified for benefits under ORS 657.150.

(2)(a) An individual who leaves the individual s normal labor market area for the major portion of any week is presumed to be unavailable for work within the meaning of this section.

(b) The presumption described in paragraph (a) of this subsection may be overcome if the individual establishes to the satisfaction of the director that the individual:

(A) Has conducted a bona fide search for work and has been reasonably accessible to suitable work in the labor market area in which the individual spent the major portion of the week to which the presumption applies; or

(B) Was required to be outside the individual s normal labor market area to apply for suitable employment within the individual s normal labor market.

(3) The director shall either promptly allow credit or pay benefits for any week for which benefits are claimed or promptly give notice of denial thereof in the manner provided in ORS 657.267 and 657.268. [Amended by 1955 c.655 7; 1961 c.631 8; 1967 c.130 11; 1973 c.398 1; 1977 c.295 3; 1979 c.521 1; 1993 c.778 11; 2008 c.23 3; 2015 c.103 1]

Note: Section 4, chapter 23, Oregon Laws 2008, provides:

Sec. 4. Sections 1 and 2 [401.186] of this 2008 Act and the amendments to ORS 657.155 by section 3 of this 2008 Act become operative when federal law permits without penalty a waiver under section 2 of this 2008 Act of the one-week waiting period required by ORS 657.155. [2008 c.23 4]

657.156 Reemployment service assistance; eligibility; rules. (1) The Employment Department shall:

(a) Identify eligible individuals who are likely to exhaust benefits payable under ORS 657.150 and who will need reemployment service assistance to make a successful transition to new employment; and

(b) Refer individuals identified under paragraph (a) of this subsection for any reemployment services available under state or federal law. Such services may include job search assistance, job placement services, counseling, testing, providing occupational and labor market information, assessment and referrals to employers.

(2) An eligible unemployed individual shall be eligible to receive benefits with respect to any week only if the individual participates in reemployment services including but not limited to job search assistance services, if the individual has been determined to be likely to exhaust regular benefits and to need reemployment services pursuant to a profiling system established by the Director of the Employment Department, unless the director determines that:

(a) The individual has completed such services; or

(b) There is justifiable cause for the individual s failure to participate in such services.

(3) In adopting rules to carry out the provisions of this section, the director, insofar as practicable, shall comply with rules and policies of the United States Department of Labor. [1995 c.193 2]

Note: 657.156 was added to and made a part of ORS chapter 657 by legislative action but was not added to any smaller series therein. See Preface to Oregon Revised Statutes for further explanation.

657.157 [1989 c.897 3; repealed by 1995 c.104 2]

657.158 Self-employment assistance; eligibility; amounts payable; rules. (1) As used in this section:

(a)(A) Regular benefits means benefits payable to an individual under this chapter, including benefits payable to federal civilian employees and to ex-servicemembers under 5 U.S.C. chapter 85.

(B) Regular benefits does not mean additional benefits payable under ORS 657.331 to 657.334 or extended benefits payable under ORS 657.321 to 657.329 unless otherwise allowed under the Federal-State Extended Unemployment Compensation Act of 1970 (26 U.S.C. 3306 et seq.), or other benefits unless otherwise authorized under federal law.

(b) Self-employment assistance activities means activities approved by the Director of the Employment Department in which individuals, identified under ORS 657.156 as likely to exhaust benefits, participate for the purpose of enabling those individuals to establish a business and become self-employed. Self-employment assistance activities includes, but is not limited to, entrepreneurial training, business counseling and technical assistance.

(c) Self-employment assistance allowance means an amount, payable in lieu of regular benefits under this chapter to an individual participating in self-employment assistance activities in accordance with this section.

(2)(a) The weekly amount of the self-employment assistance allowance payable to an individual is equal to the weekly regular benefit amount.

(b) Self-employment assistance allowance amounts shall be paid from the Unemployment Compensation Benefit Fund or from federal benefits.

(3) The self-employment assistance allowance is payable to an individual at the same intervals and on the same terms and conditions as regular benefits under this chapter except that:

(a) The provisions of this chapter regarding being available for work, actively seeking work and refusing to accept suitable work are not applicable to the individual.

(b) The provisions of ORS 657.150 (6) relating to remuneration for services performed are not applicable to income earned from self-employment by the individual.

(c) An individual participating in self-employment assistance activities shall be considered to be unemployed under ORS 657.100.

(d) An individual who fails to participate in self-employment assistance activities or who fails actively to engage on a full-time basis in establishing a business and becoming self-employed is ineligible to receive the self-employment assistance allowance for each week in which the failure occurs.

(4)(a) An individual may receive the self-employment assistance allowance:

(A) In lieu of regular benefits for a period of not more than 26 weeks; and

(B) In lieu of extended benefits or other unemployment insurance benefits allowable under federal law for an additional period of not more than 26 weeks.

(b) The total period for which an individual may receive regular benefits, extended benefits or other unemployment insurance benefits allowable under federal law is reduced by the number of weeks for which the individual receives the self-employment assistance allowance in lieu of regular benefits or extended benefits or other unemployment insurance benefits, respectively.

(5) The number of individuals receiving the self-employment assistance allowance at any time may not exceed:

(a) With respect to individuals receiving self-employment assistance allowance in lieu of regular benefits, five percent of the number of individuals receiving regular benefits.

(b) With respect to individuals receiving self-employment assistance allowance in lieu of extended benefits, one percent of the number of individuals receiving extended benefits.

(6) The self-employment assistance allowance shall be charged to employers in the manner provided in this chapter for the charging of regular benefits or extended benefits.

(7) In adopting rules to carry out the provisions of this section, the director, insofar as practicable, shall comply with rules and policies of the United States Department of Labor.

(8) The provisions of this section apply to weeks beginning after the date of enactment of federal law authorizing this section or the date of any required plan adopted by the United States Department of Labor, whichever date is later. The authority under this section terminates at the end of the week preceding the date when federal law no longer authorizes this section, unless that date is on a Saturday in which case the authority terminates on that date. [1995 c.193 3; 2013 c.704 6]

Note: 657.158 was added to and made a part of ORS chapter 657 by legislative action but was not added to any smaller series therein. See Preface to Oregon Revised Statutes for further explanation.

657.159 Claimants required to submit job qualifications to Oregon State Employment Service; use of information; referring claimant to available jobs. (1) To satisfy the registration requirements of ORS 657.155 (1), an unemployed individual who submits a claim for benefits, at the request of the Director of the Employment Department or an authorized representative of the director, shall submit to the Oregon State Employment Service information regarding the individual s job qualifications, training and experience as the director or an authorized representative of the director deems necessary to carry out job placement and counseling services for the individual.

(2) Information submitted by an individual pursuant to the provisions of subsection (1) of this section shall be promptly used by the Oregon State Employment Service for matching against available job openings retained in Employment Department records. The results shall be made available to department placement personnel who will refer the claimant to any available, suitable job opening for which the individual qualifies, provided the referral is not in conflict with federal or state law.

(3) In determining the amount and type of information an individual must submit to satisfy the requirements of subsection (1) of this section, the director or an authorized representative of the director shall consider, among other factors, the individual s employer affiliation, the anticipated and actual duration of the individual s period of employment, union membership and union hiring practices, state and local labor market conditions and information from past or prospective employers of the individual.

(4) When this chapter requires individuals or employers to furnish information in writing or require a signed document or signature, the director may waive those requirements to implement the Employment Department Information Network project. [1979 c.149 2; 1993 c.778 20]