The bill amends existing unemployment insurance laws in Washington State to clarify the eligibility of workers for benefits during strikes or lockouts. It specifies that individuals will be disqualified from receiving benefits if their unemployment is due to a strike at their last place of employment. However, this disqualification does not apply if the individual is not participating in or financing the strike and does not belong to a class of workers involved in the strike. The bill also introduces a new provision that allows individuals to receive benefits for up to four calendar weeks if they are unemployed due to a strike, subject to certain limitations.

Additionally, the bill establishes that if an individual receives unemployment benefits while unemployed due to a strike and later receives retroactive wages for any week covered by those benefits, the state will issue an overpayment assessment to recover the corresponding benefits. The legislation also includes provisions to ensure compliance with federal requirements related to unemployment funding and tax credits, stating that any conflicting parts of the act will be inoperative only to the extent of the conflict.

Statutes affected:
Original Bill: 50.20.090
Substitute Bill: 50.20.090
Engrossed Substitute: 50.20.090