Gainey Law, PLLC Seattle Employment Law Attorney

As schools plan to open and teachers and other workers wonder what their rights are to Not return to work answers are not as clear as we would like. However, do not make any rash decisions. A lot can change in a few short weeks (isn't that the lesson of 2020?). The non-profit legal aid Unemployment Law Project has been recording weekly FAQs. You can watch them all here:  QUESTIONS?  to find out about your rights as an employer or employee with regards to unemployment benefits. 

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.

These are just quick notes from a Webinar the Washington State unemployment (ESD) office put out today. If you work or worked in Seattle, Bellevue, Redmond, Kent or anywhere in Washington State this information applies to you. Current options for Unemployment benefits (ESD) during the Corona virus / Covid-19. Watch the recent webinar here (starts at 27 min. fast forward) . 1. Standby 2. Partial Employment 3. Shared Work (no requirement to look for work ) “WAIVER OF WORK SEARCH” Right now unemployment department is inundated with applications. Normal 3K last week 100K!!!! So go online and apply when everyone else is sleeping. File every week even if denied and keep filing. They can fix it retroactively. Still requires a base year (first 4 quarters of the last five) of work to qualify - must have worked 680 hours. You can combine claims with other states if you moved. You can open a claim while still working full time. Why would you? To see what your benefit ...