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News Release

US Labor Department announces nearly $100 million in grants available for states to implement, improve short-time compensation or 'work sharing'

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Labor today announced the availability of nearly $100 million in grants for states to implement or improve existing short-term compensation, commonly referred to as "work sharing," programs. This funding has been made available through the bipartisan Middle Class Tax Relief and Job Creation Act of 2012 signed by President Obama in February, which authorized states to set up programs to give employers an alternative to layoffs.

"Establishing or expanding work-sharing programs nationwide will help business owners better weather hard economic times by temporarily reducing their labor costs while still keeping their existing skilled employees," said Secretary of Labor Hilda L. Solis. "This program is a win-win for businesses and employees alike."

Work sharing allows employees to keep their jobs and helps employers to avoid laying off their trained workforces during economic downturns by reducing the hours of work for an entire group of affected workers. Workers affected by reduced hours can have their wages compensated with a portion of their weekly unemployment compensation payments.

The legislation requires each state to submit a complete application to the Labor Department in order to receive a grant. Any state that currently has an active short-time compensation program is eligible to apply if the state's law on work sharing conforms to Section 3306(v) of the Federal Unemployment Tax Act and its program is not subject to discontinuation.

Each state has a designated allotment from the total grant funds available. One-third of the allotted grant money for each state will be used to implement or improve a short-time compensation program, and two-thirds will be available to promote and enroll employers in the program.

The department will provide technical assistance through webinars and other methods to help states achieve the purposes of the grants. The department also will collect and disseminate successful practices based on program implementation as well as outreach tools developed as a result of these grants.

For more information and an application checklist, read the Unemployment Insurance Program Letter No. 27-12 distributed by the Labor Department's Employment and Training Administration at http://s.dol.gov/UR.

Editor's Note: A chart with grant amounts available by state and territory follows this news release.

Short-Time Compensation Grants Amounts Available by State/Territory

State

Total Share

State

Total Share

Alaska

$240,772

North Carolina

$2,899,754

Alabama

$1,414,715

North Dakota

$237,096

Arkansas

$879,937

Nebraska

$649,799

Arizona

$1,955,074

New Hampshire

$451,654

California

$11,593,587

New Jersey

$2,937,860

Colorado

$1,819,895

New Mexico

$572,119

Connecticut

$1,260,659

Nevada

$1,027,665

District of Columbia

$416,291

New York

$6,078,428

Delaware

$312,075

Ohio

$3,714,908

Florida

$5,913,909

Oklahoma

$1,129,637

Georgia

$3,072,385

Oregon

$1,189,281

Hawaii

$440,074

Pennsylvania

$4,010,338

Iowa

$1,061,207

Puerto Rico

$601,269

Idaho

$456,199

Rhode Island

$329,158

Illinois

$4,307,659

South Carolina

$1,352,143

Indiana

$2,074,861

South Dakota

$268,073

Kansas

$1,031,988

Tennessee

$1,967,539

Kentucky

$1,330,647

Texas

$8,297,415

Louisiana

$1,501,852

Utah

$870,818

Massachusetts

$2,366,515

Virginia

$2,739,420

Maryland

$1,832,552

Virgin Islands

$28,519

Maine

$413,881

Vermont

$202,352

Michigan

$2,840,535

Washington

$2,143,527

Minnesota

$1,879,950

Wisconsin

$1,923,648

Missouri

$1,930,233

West Virginia

$488,063

Mississippi

$802,670

Wyoming

$205,845

Montana

$283,550

 

 

Total = $99,750,000

 

Agency
Employment and Training Administration
Date
August 13, 2012
Release Number
12-1618-NAT