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Home > About USPS & News > Forms & Publications > Postal Periodicals and Publications > Manuals > Employee and Labor Relations Manual - Issue 18 > 5 Employee Benefits > 550 Unemployment Compensation
550 Unemployment Compensation
551.1 Legal Guidelines
551.11 Administration
The Unemployment Compensation for Federal Employees Program (UCFE)
is administered by the states under separate agreements with the U.S.
Secretary of Labor. Under these agreements, the states are agents of the
United States and take, adjust, pay, or deny claims for unemployment
compensation. Based on wage and separation information supplied by the
Postal Service, the state agency determines under its state employment
security law the postal employee's entitlement to unemployment
compensation.
Benefit payments are made to former postal employees by the states under
the agreements between the states and the U.S. Department of Labor. The
Postal Service then reimburses the states through the Department of Labor.
551.13 Illegal Claims
Federal law provides criminal penalties for anyone who knowingly makes a
false statement or representation of a material fact, or knowingly fails to
disclose a material fact, to obtain or increase for self or for any other
individual unemployment compensation benefits for federal employees.
551.2 Qualification Factors
Requirements for unemployment compensation benefits vary from state to
state in accordance with each state's employment security law. However,
each state law requires that a claimant:
a. Be unemployed or be employed less than full-time as defined by the
state employment security law with earnings less than an amount
specified in the state law.
b. Register for work and file an unemployment compensation claim at a
local state employment security office.
c. Have worked a specified amount of time or have earned a specified
amount of wages, or both, within a certain period.
d. Be able to work.
e. Be available for work.
f. Be actively seeking work.
g. Report periodically to the local state employment security office.
551.3 Disqualification Factors
Disqualification provisions vary from state to state. In the majority of states,
employment security laws provide for a period of total disqualification or for a
penalty period of temporary disqualification for certain types of separations. A
former postal employee is not disqualified if the separation was an
involuntary termination of employment for other than misconduct, or if the
separation was a voluntary termination or resignation based on good cause.
The most common reasons for disqualification are:
a. The claimant was discharged for misconduct.
b. The claimant quit the job voluntarily without good cause.
c. The claimant refused a suitable job without good cause.
551.4 Information to State Employment Security Agencies
551.41 Information Required
The Postal Service furnishes state employment security agencies certain
salary and separation information concerning claimants who are or have
been employed by the Postal Service. This information is processed and
returned to the state agency by the Eagan ASC within 4 workdays after
receipt of the request. The information includes:
a. Periods of Postal Service employment.
b. Amount of remuneration for service.
c. Amount of lump sum terminal leave payments and periods of time for
which the lump sum payment was made.
d. Reason(s) for separation.
551.42 Privacy Act Requirements
551.421 Authority to Disclose
Release of wage and separation information to a state employment security
agency can be made without written authorization from the former Postal
Service employee.
551.422 Accountability of Disclosure
To meet the Privacy Act disclosure accounting requirements, the state
coordinators described in 552.3 receive from the Eagan ASC copies of
Unemployment Compensation for Federal Employees Form ES 931, Request
for Wage Separation Information; Form ES 934, Request for Information or
Reconsideration of Federal Findings; Form ES 936, Request for Verification
of UCFE Wage and Separation Information Furnished on Form ES 931; and
PS Form 2342, Request: Unemployment Compensation Data, and PS Form
6803, Wage and Separation Information (ES 931) (3-part continuous). These
forms are to be retained by the state coordinator for a period of 3 years. The
Eagan ASC maintains the Form 6803 Issue Report (Program No. PHE100)
on microfiche for a period of 5 years. State coordinators are to maintain
hearings and appeals case files for 5 years. Official Postal Service records
control schedules should be consulted to determine retention requirements
by state coordinators and installation heads.
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