About Attorney Nicole Gainey

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Seattle, WA, United States
Seattle Attorney, Nicole Gainey, founder of Gainey Law PLLC, represents Washington State employees who have been sexually harassed, discriminated against and wrongfully terminated in legal disputes against their employers. To date, she was litigated against employers large and small seeking justice for her clients.
Showing posts with label #WAESD #unemployment. Show all posts
Showing posts with label #WAESD #unemployment. Show all posts

Thursday, April 23, 2020

Having a hard time getting your unemployment benefits? Can't get anyone on the phone? Try after 5pm.


A word from the Unemployment Department of Washington State

ALERT: Our system update is complete and eServices is online. However, both the site and our phone lines are experiencing extremely high volumes. Pages are loading slowly and call wait times are long.

Please keep trying or come back and try later.

If you are calling to submit your weekly claim, please try back after 5 p.m.

Thank you for your patience. We apologize for the inconvenience.


For more information visit www.ESD.gov  


Tuesday, April 21, 2020

Is the Worst of the Corona Virus Crisis behind us in Washington State or Yet to Come?

While many of us are itching to get back to some semblance of "normal life," the indicators are not there to suggest that will be possible or safe immediately.

The curve may be flattening, but without adequate testing for antibodies what does that mean for re-opening businesses? Its hard to say. Here are the statistics we do know to date. Read more about Washington's confirmed cases here.

Seattle-King County Public Health’s Jeff Duchin spoke out this week about how prepared Washington is to reopen, noting that even with the outbreak waning, it’s not yet time to relax social distancing measures. Read more.


Dr. Gordan Cohen joined Seattle's morning news to explain: Reopening the Economy before a vaccine will call for strict sanitation protocols.

So, hang in there Washington and we will get through this together. To that end, I found this list of the 80, yes 80, things to do while stuck at home. Read More about things to do while stuck at home bored here.

Sunday, April 19, 2020

EEOC update regarding back to work issues

EEOC addresses back to work issues in recent COVID-19 update.
Law360 outlines a few of the issues:
One question covered what employers should do about potential harassment and discrimination once their workplaces reopen. The EEOC said that employers can remind its workers that bias won't be tolerated and advise management of its role in stopping and reporting harassment and discrimination.

In the new section on returning to work, the EEOC fielded inquiries about screening workers and providing accommodations for personal protective equipment. The agency said the ADA lets employers make inquiries and conduct medical exams if they're necessary for keeping out workers who have a medical condition that poses "a direct threat to health or safety."

But the agency also advised that employers should be careful not to "engage in unlawful disparate treatment based on protected characteristics in decisions related to screening and exclusion."

Additionally, while employers can require workers to wear personal protective equipment and engage in certain infection control practices like hand washing, they should be ready to discuss disability and religious accommodations, the EEOC said. 

--Editing by Orlando Lorenzo.

For more information visit the EEOC website: Here.

Monday, April 6, 2020

Help for the Self-Employed worker.

Gig Workers and the Self-Employed are Eligible for Unemployment Benefits
An important component of the CARES Act significantly expands unemployment insurance benefits for U.S. workers impacted by the coronavirus outbreak. The legislation increases the amount of weekly unemployment assistance workers receive; extends how long they can receive it; and expands eligibility to nontraditional workers such as independent contractors, gig workers and the self-employed. See more at SHRM here.

Wednesday, March 25, 2020

Washington State employment Security Department Clarifies Changes



GO to CHAMBER OF COMMERCE PAGE FOR INFO and better formatting. Or see text below.

There were many questions about providing health benefits to employees during this time. For most employer-sponsored plans, employees can continue to stay on employer-sponsored health insurance while on an unemployment program. This would fall under “NON-FMLA leave of absence”. It is a provision that would allow accommodations in this regard. Employers can self-manage/determine how they implement, but it would allow employers to decide to maintain eligibility. There also needs to be at least one active employee in the business at all times (which can be the owner). Most employer-sponsored programs can continue to cover employees. Most employer plans (including Business Health Trust) have non-FMLA Leave of Absence. This means, that employees can still participate and that employers have discretion in this. Check with your broker or health plan if you have more questions. Note the provision below: NON-FMLA LEAVE OF ABSENCE Coverage for an employee and enrolled dependent(s) may be continued for up to 90 days when the employer grants the employee a leave of absence and full premium rates continue to be paid. The 90-day leave of absence period counts towards the maximum COBRA continuation period, except as prohibited during the FMLA (Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993).For LTD, coverage ends as of the date of the next month in which the leave of absence begins. Denials & Standby Denials that went out for standby based on part-time status and/or because they requested more than 4 weeks will be corrected by ESD automatically. Please encourage employees to continue to apply weekly. All programs require weekly filing. All Unemployment programs require 680 hours in the base year. Standby: Employees normally part-time or full-time working under 16 hours per week may qualify for Standby. Common separation reason is “laid off” (even if temporary due to closure/reduction in hours). Under the emergency rules: - Part-time employees may participate - Up to 12 weeks - Do not need to actively seek work if on approved standby. Please note: that the ESD system has errors currently and they are working to fix this. Please continue to file. If return to work dates need to be updated, the employee can request in their eservices account or by contacting the claims center. Due to high volumes, web pages are very slow. (See screen shots attached). Partial Employment: Employers who need to keep operating on a less-than-full time basis can request status known as “Partial” for their employees; work search while on unemployment is waived if employees are hired to work full-time, employees return to at least 1 week of full time employment within a 4 month period, employees work a minimum of 16 hours per week during Partial Employment. Employees need to claim weekly. Shared Work Video: Shared work must be applied for by the employer (they need to have a work plan) and employees can not drop below 50% employment. Shared work is for permanently hourly employees with a minimum of 2 permanent employees in the SharedWork plan. Employees are not required to look for work during this time. Employees need to claim weekly. Resources: The below websites have information on the type of benefit programs and common questions (about existing claims, eligibility, Guide for Employees Easy To Read Guide of Scenarios User Guide for Employers (including how to manage claims, apply for shared work and other programs) For specific employer-questions, please direct inquiries to: SystemPolicy@esd.wa.gov

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