Amends TCA Title 4 and Title 50.

This bill establishes a voluntary shared work unemployment benefits program that allows certain employers to submit to the department of labor and workforce development for approval a plan to reduce employee work hours in exchange for employee access to a certain level of unemployment compensation benefits, as discussed below. This bill requires an employer wishing to participate in a shared work program to submit a signed written shared work benefits plan to the chief administrative officer of the division of employment security of the department of labor and workforce development (referred to as the administrator) for approval. The administrator will approve a shared work benefits plan only if the following criteria are met: (1) The plan: (A) Applies to and identifies the specified affected group and includes an estimate of the number of layoffs that might occur absent participation in the shared work program; (B) Certifies that the aggregate reduction in work hours is in lieu of all layoffs that would have affected at least 10 percent of the employees in the affected group or groups to which the plan applies and that would have resulted in an equivalent reduction in work hours; (C) Applies to at least 10 percent of the employees in the affected group and: the plan provides equal treatment to all employees of the group if the plan applies to all employees in the affected group; and the plan provides equal treatment to employees within each subgroup if the affected group is divided into subgroups; (D) Includes a certified statement by the employer that the terms and implementation of the shared work plan are consistent with obligations the employer has under applicable federal and state laws. An employee who joins an affected group after the approval of the shared work plan is automatically covered under the previously approved plan, effective the week that the administrator receives written notice from the shared work employer that the employee has joined; and (E) Does not serve as a subsidy of seasonal employment during the off-season nor as a subsidy of temporary part-time employment or intermittent employment; (2) The employees in the affected group or groups are identified by name, social security number, and other information required by the administrator; (3) The usual weekly hours of work for employees in the affected group or groups are reduced by not less than 10 percent and not more than 40 percent; (4) Health benefits and retirement benefits under defined benefit pension plans and other fringe benefits will continue to be provided to employees in the affected group or groups as though their work weeks had not been reduced. However, if the employer reduces the level of benefits under this item (4) provision for employees who are not in the shared work group, then the level of benefits may be reduced by a like amount for the employer's shared work employees; (5) During the previous four months, the workforce in the affected group has not been reduced by temporary layoffs of more than 10 percent of the workers; (6) In the case of employees represented by an exclusive bargaining representative: (A) The plan is approved in writing by the collective bargaining agent. If the certification of an exclusive bargaining representative has been appealed, then the bargaining representative is considered to be the exclusive bargaining representative for work sharing plan purposes; (B) The plan must contain a certification by the employer that the employer has made the proposed plan available to: each employee in the affected group for inspection; or if applicable, to the exclusive bargaining representative; and (C) The plan must include: a description of how the plan was made available; and if advance notice of the plan was not feasible, an explanation of why advance notice was not feasible; (7) On the most recent computation date preceding the date of submission of the shared work plan for approval, the total of all contributions paid on the employing unit's own behalf and credited to its account for all previous periods equaled or exceeded the regular benefits charged to its account for all previous periods; and (8) The employer agrees to: furnish reports relating to the proper conduct of the plan; allow the administrator or the administrator's authorized representatives access to all records necessary to verify the plan before approval; and allow the administrator to monitor and evaluate application of the plan after approval. This bill sets out certain duties of the administrator in reviewing and approving or rejecting plans. This bill also sets out that a plan under this bill: (1) Is effective on the date specified in the plan or on a date mutually agreed upon by the employer and the administrator, but no earlier than the date of approval of the plan by the administrator; (2) Expires at the end of the twelfth full calendar month after its effective date or on the date specified in the plan if the date is earlier, as long as the plan is not previously revoked by the administrator; and (3) Terminates, if revoked by the administrator, on the date specified in the administrator's written order of revocation. Under this bill, an individual: (1) Is eligible to receive shared work benefits with respect to any week only if, in addition to monetary entitlement, the administrator finds that: (A) During the week, the individual is employed as a member of an affected group under an approved shared work benefits plan that was approved before that week, and the plan is in effect with respect to the week for which the benefits are claimed; and (B) During the week, the individual is able to work and is available for the normal work week with the shared work employer. However, this bill prohibits an otherwise eligible individual from being denied benefits with respect to any week in which the individual is in training to enhance job skills; (2) Is deemed unemployed in any week for which renumeration is payable to the individual as an employee in any week for which renumeration is payable to the individual as an employee in an affected group for 90 percent or less than the individual's normal weekly hours of work as specified under the approved shared work benefits plan in effect for the week; (3) Cannot be denied shared work benefits for any week by reason of the application of provisions relating to availability for work and active search for work with an employer other than the shared work employer; and (4) May be eligible for shared work benefits or unemployment benefits, as appropriate, except that no individual is eligible for combined benefits in any benefit year in an amount more than the maximum entitlement established for unemployment benefits, nor is an individual eligible to be paid shared work benefits for more than 25 weeks, whether or not consecutive, in any benefit year pursuant to a shared work plan. The shared work weekly benefit amount will be the product of the regular weekly unemployment benefits amount multiplied by the percentage of reduction of at least 10 percent in the individual's usual weekly hours of work. The shared work benefits paid an individual will be deducted from the maximum entitlement amount established for that individual's benefit year. Claims for shared work benefits are filed in the same manner as claims for unemployment benefits or as prescribed in rules by the administrator. This bill provides that, if an individual: (1) Works in the same week for an employer other than the shared work employer, and the individual's combined hours of work for both employers are greater than 90 percent of the normal hours of work with the shared work employer, then the individual is not entitled to benefits under the shared work provisions of this bill or the unemployment benefits provisions of present law; (2) Works in the same week for both the shared work employer and another employer and the individual's combined hours of work for both employers are equal to or less than 90 percent of the usual hours of work for the shared work employer, then the benefit amount payable for that week is the weekly unemployment benefits amount reduced by the same percentage that the combined hours are of the usual hours of work. A week for which benefits are paid under this provision counts as a week of shared work benefits; (3) Did not work, with the approval of the employer, during any portion of the workweek, other than the reduced portion covered by the shared work plan, then the individual is not disqualified for the absence or deemed ineligible for shared work benefits for that reason alone; (4) Performs no services during a week for the shared work employer and is otherwise eligible, then the individual will be paid the full weekly unemployment benefit amount. Such week is not counted as a week with respect to which shared work benefits were received; and (5) Does not work for the shared work employer during a week, but works for another employer and is otherwise eligible, then the individual will be paid benefits for that week under the partial unemployment benefits provisions of this chapter. Such week is not counted as a week with respect to which shared work benefits were received. This bill provides that shared work benefits are charged to the employer's experience rating accounts in the same manner as unemployment benefits are charged under present law provisions governing unemployment compensation. Employers liable for payments in lieu of contributions must have shared work benefits attributed to service in their employ in the same manner as unemployment benefits are attributed. Under this bill, an individual who has received all of the combined unemployment benefits and shared work benefits available in a benefit year will be considered an exhaustee for purposes of extended benefits, as provided under present law, and, if otherwise eligible under that provision, will be eligible to receive extended benefits. This bill provides that, except as otherwise provided, provisions of the Tennessee Employment Security Law that are applicable to unemployment benefits claimants will apply to shared work benefits claimants. An individual who files an initial claim for shared work benefits must be provided, if eligible, a monetary determination of entitlement to shared work benefits by the administrator and must serve a waiting period of one week. This bill provides that it does not preclude an otherwise eligible claimant from drawing total or partial unemployment benefits when the claimant has exhausted the claimant's shared work benefits. ON MARCH 14, 2022, THE SENATE ADOPTED AMENDMENT #1 AND PASSED SENATE BILL 958, AS AMENDED. AMENDMENT #1 changes this bill's effective date from July 1, 2021, to December 1, 2023, and revises the provision whereby an individual may not be paid shared work benefits for more than 25 weeks, whether or not consecutive, in any benefit year pursuant to a shared work plan to instead provide that an individual may not be paid shared work benefits for more than the applicable maximum number of weeks under the Tennessee Employment Security Law, whether or not consecutive, in any benefit year pursuant to a shared work plan. Under that present law provision, effective December 1, 2023, a claimant is eligible during a benefit year to a total amount of benefits: (A) Equal to: 12 weeks, if the state average unemployment rate is at or below 5.5 percent; and an additional week in addition to the 12 weeks for each 0.5 percent increment in the state's average unemployment rate above 5.5 percent; and (B) Up to a maximum of 20 weeks if the state's average unemployment rate exceeds nine percent. ON APRIL 27, 2022, THE HOUSE SUBSTITUTED SENATE BILL 958 FOR HOUSE BILL 1274, ADOPTED AMENDMENT #2, AND PASSED SENATE BILL 958, AS AMENDED. AMENDMENT #2 revises the provision whereby an otherwise eligible individual may not be denied benefits with respect to any week in which the individual is in training to enhance job skills. Under this bill as introduced, such training includes employer-sponsored training and worker training funded by this state, if the training has been approved by the administrator; this amendment revises this provision to instead provide that such training includes employer-sponsored training or worker training funded under the federal Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act, if the training has been approved by the administrator.