(a)
Definitions. For purposes of this section and section 401(b)
of the law (
43 P. S. §
801(b)), the following words
and phrases have the following meanings, unless the context clearly indicates
otherwise:
Employment service-The state
employment service established under 20 CFR Part 652 (relating to establishment
and functioning of state employment services).
Pennsylvania CareerLink®
system-The system of offices, personnel and resources, including the
Commonwealth Workforce Development System or successor electronic resources,
through which the Department provides services under the Wagner-Peyser Act
(29 U.S.C.A. §§
49-49l-2) and the Workforce
Investment Act of 1998 (29
U.S.C.A. §§
2801-2945) or
similar or successor statutes.
Register for employment search
services-Provide information regarding education, work history and
qualifications and other information required by the Department that is
relevant to receipt of employment search services.
Similar positions-Positions that offer
employment and wages similar to those the claimant had prior to his
unemployment and which are within a 45-minute commuting distance.
(b)
Initial procedures.
When a claimant files an application for benefits in accordance with
§
65.41 (relating to filing
methods), the Department will:
(1) Provide
instructions to the claimant regarding the process to register for employment
search services and post a resume in the Pennsylvania CareerLink®
system.
(2) Advise the claimant of
services provided by the Department and the Pennsylvania CareerLink®
system.
(3) Provide a copy of the
recommended work search record form to the claimant and advise the claimant
that the form is available on the Department's web site.
(c)
Work registration. A
claimant shall register for employment search services in the Pennsylvania
CareerLink® system within 30 days after the claimant files his application
for benefits. See section 401(b)(1)(i) of the law. If a claimant does not
register for employment search services in the Pennsylvania CareerLink®
system within 30 days after the claimant files his application for benefits,
the claimant will be ineligible for compensation for any week that ends more
than 30 days after the claimant files his application for benefits unless the
claimant registers by Sunday of that week.
(d)
Weekly requirements. To
be eligible for compensation for the third week of the benefit year for which a
claim for compensation is filed and each week thereafter for which a claim for
compensation is filed, a claimant shall do the following:
(1) Engage in work search activities during
the week in accordance with subsections (e) and (f).
(2) Complete the recommended work search
record form for the week or create a record of his work search activities
during the week that contains the same information that would be required to
complete the recommended form.
(3)
Retain the record for 2 years from the effective date of the application for
benefits.
(4) Produce the record
for the Department's review at the times and in a manner as required by the
Department.
(e)
Weekly work search activities.
(1) A claimant shall apply for at least two
positions during the week as follows:
(i) The
claimant may limit his applications to similar positions. See section
401(b)(1)(iii) of the law. If a claimant chooses to limit his applications to
similar positions and as a result of that limitation the claimant determines
that he would be unable to apply for at least two positions during the week,
the claimant shall do one or a combination of the following:
(A) The claimant shall apply for positions
that would provide suitable work under section 4(t) of the law (43 P. S. §
753(t)) in order to apply
for at least two positions during the week.
(B) The claimant shall engage in a work
search activity in paragraph (4) instead of an application for a position so
that the combined number of applications and work search activities during the
week is at least two, determined before the application of paragraph
(4).
(ii) The claimant
may apply for positions that would provide suitable work under section 4(t) of
the law.
(2) For purposes
of paragraph (1), a claimant may apply for a position in the following ways:
(i) In person.
(ii) By mail, phone or electronic
transmission.
(iii) By submitting a
job application or resume to the employer.
(iv) By following a hiring procedure
established by the employer.
(3) A repeated application for the same
position does not satisfy the requirements of paragraph (1) unless there is a
reasonable basis to believe that the employer's hiring circumstances have
changed.
(4) In addition to the
requirements of paragraph (1), the claimant shall do at least one of the
following during the week:
(i) Attend a job
fair.
(ii) Search positions posted
on the Pennsylvania CareerLink® system or Internet job banks.
(iii) Post a resume in the Pennsylvania
CareerLink® system or other resume posting service.
(iv) Contact colleagues, former coworkers or
other individuals in similar professions or occupations to make known the
claimant's availability for employment or obtain information about available
positions, prospective employers or other employment opportunities.
(v) Utilize an employment agency, employment
registry or school placement service.
(vi) Take a civil service test or other
pre-employment test.
(vii)
Participate in a program or activity offered through the Pennsylvania
CareerLink® system.
(5) If a claimant applies for more than the
minimum number of positions under paragraph (1), the additional application may
substitute for a work search activity under paragraph (4).
(f)
Alternative requirements and
waiver.
(1) Work search activities
under subsection (e) are not required for a week if any of the following apply:
(i) The claimant meets all of the following:
(A) Is a member of a union that has a hiring
hall or the claimant is registered with a hiring hall.
(B) Is required to obtain employment through
the hiring hall.
(C) Fulfills the
requirements to maintain eligibility for referral by the hiring hall during the
week.
(ii) The claimant
actively participates during the week in a program or activity approved by the
Department as an acceptable work search alternative.
(2) If a claimant works part time during a
week and earns in excess of the claimant's partial benefit credit as defined in
section 4(m.3) of the law, the following apply:
(i) The claimant shall satisfy the
requirements of subsection (e)(1) by applying for one position during the
week.
(ii) The claimant will not be
required to satisfy the requirements of subsection (e)(4) during the
week.
(3) If a claimant
is interviewed for a position by an employer or an employer representative, the
interview may substitute for an application for a position for purposes of
subsection (e)(1) or may substitute for a work search activity for purposes of
subsection (e)(4) for the week in which the interview occurs.
(4) For purposes of subsection (c), if a
claimant's labor market is located outside of this Commonwealth the claimant
shall register for employment search services with the employment service that
serves the claimant's labor market.
(5) Notwithstanding any other provision of
this section, the Department may determine that a claimant has satisfied the
requirements of section 401(b) of the law if the claimant's work search efforts
include actions comparable to traditional actions in the claimant's trade or
occupation by which jobs have been found by others in the community and labor
market in which the claimant is seeking employment. See section 401(b)(3) of
the law.
(6) The Department may
waive or alter the requirements of this section or section 401(b) of the law in
cases or situations with respect to which the Secretary finds that compliance
with these requirements would be oppressive or which would be inconsistent with
the purposes of the law. See section 401(b)(6) of the law. A claimant may
submit a request to the Department to waive or alter the requirements of this
section or section 401(b) of the law. The claimant may complete and submit the
recommended waiver request form available on the Department's web site or
submit a written request that contains the same information that would be
required to complete the recommended form.
(g)
Applicability.
(1) This section does not apply:
(i) As provided in section 401(b)(4) and (5)
of the law.
(ii) To a week in which
a claimant is in training with the approval of the Secretary.
(iii) To a week in which a claimant is
participating in a work sharing plan under Article XIII of the law
(43
P. S. §§
916.1-916.13).
(2) For purposes of section 401(b)(5) of the
law:
(i) A claimant is advised by the employer
of the date on which he will return to work only if both of the following
conditions are satisfied:
(A) The employer
designates a specific recall date and notifies the claimant of the recall date
in writing.
(B) The employer's
designation of a recall date is bona fide.
(ii) Section 401(b)(5) of the law does not
apply to a week following the week in which either of the following occur:
(A) The designated recall date is rescinded
by the employer or is rescinded in fact.
(B) The designated recall date has
passed.
(3) The
requirement in section 401(b)(1)(ii) of the law does not apply to a claimant
who is seeking work in an employment sector in which resumes are not commonly
used.
(h)
Extended benefits. For purposes of extended benefits under
Article IV-A of the law (43 P. S. §§
811-818), if the eligibility requirements for
extended benefits include work search requirements in addition to the
requirements of section 401(b) of the law and this section, the claimant also
shall satisfy the additional work search requirements applicable to extended
benefits.