For more than a decade, an increasing number of workers are finding that they have “agreed” to have all of their workplace disputes handled through arbitration proceedings. Note: This “agreement” is often little more than a clause in small print ..read more

The diocese has petitioned for review before the US Supreme Court the Catholic Charities decision by the Wisconsin Supreme Court. Note: All the filed materials with the US Supreme Court are available at the court’s public docket for this case ..read more

The Department has scheduled a public hearing on unemployment benefits and taxes for Thursday, November 21st, at 2 to 4 pm and 5 to 6 pm. This public hearing is online only (via webex) and requires prior registration for both ..read more

Or, who should be in charge for the sake of middle-class prosperity, Mr. Potter or George Bailey? Unemployment is a key economic indicator, as the rate is tied to whether companies are hiring or laying off workers. The whole point of unemployment benefits, after all, is economic insurance for businesses so that their customers continue to have money to buy the things they need, like food and housing. The decreased and irregular purchasing power of wage earners in turn vitally affects the livelihood of farmers, merchants and manufacturers, results in a decreased demand for their products, and ..read more

There is no doubt any longer that the 40% administrative concealment penalty that the Department charges for unemployment fraud is highly profitable to the Department. Note: The 40% administrative penalty is actually two separate penalties: a 15% penalty that goes back into the unemployment trust fund and a 25% penalty that goes into a separate program integrity fund. The program integrity fund has mushroomed in size with the Covid-19 pandemic, as all of those unemployment benefits that were paid out have become an effective mechanism for charging unemployment fraud for unintentional claim-f ..read more

On March 26th of this year, the Wisconsin Supreme Court decided that further review in Amazon Logistics v. LIRC, 2024 WI 15, was premature. As a result, the court of appeals decision in Amazon Logistics v. LIRC, 2023 WI App 26, 407 Wis.2d 807, 992 N.W.2d 168, remained in place. Before getting to that appeals court decision and what it means, the terrain for gig workers (also called self-employed workers or independent contractors) has been in a topsy-turvy legal world. Gig workers, after all, typically include drivers for Uber, Lyft, Door Dash, and Amazon, all of whom became suddenly very impo ..read more

Jake has been on a tear with economic news for Wisconsin, and it has been too long since I provided an update on this front. So, I’m going to piggyback off of his efforts. In general, Wisconsin has seen both solid job AND wage growth the past few years. While the beginning of 2023 saw a slight slow down, the latter half of 2023 saw significant income growth in the state, especially when compared to other Midwestern states. Change in net earnings, Midwest Q4 2023 Wis. +5.0% Ohio +4.5% Ind. +4.5% Mich +4.4% Minn +3.6% Ill. +3.4% Iowa -0.1% Source: Wisconsin’s income and growth ended 2023 str ..read more

Last week, the Wisconsin Supreme Court issued its decision in Catholic Charities v. LIRC, 2024 WI 13. At issue in this case was whether the Catholic Charities entities would be exempt from paying any unemployment taxes (and their employees no longer eligible for unemployment benefits when laid off) because the Catholic Charities entities are, like churches themselves, operated for faith-based reasons. Note: Articles on the decision have appeared in the Wisconsin Examiner, WisPolitics, and Urban Milwaukee. In general, churches and their affiliated non-profit entities are exempt from income an ..read more

Help make government unemployment insurance forms easier to use — and get a $50 Visa gift card for your feedback. The US Dep’t of Labor and Nava Public Benefit Corporation are looking for individuals who are unemployed or who have recently experienced unemployment to better understand the issues people face when applying on-line for unemployment benefits and completing on-line weekly certifications. General Information If selected to participate, you will receive a $50 Visa gift card for completing a one-hour interview. Sessions will be held between February and April 2024. Nava will present ..read more

In late 2022 and early 2023, a few folks started contacting me about being disqualified or having to repay unemployment benefits they received during the Covid-19 pandemic because of their participation in lab testing studies. Then at the July 2023 Unemployment Insurance Advisory Council meeting, a coalition of lab testing companies and Rep. Gundrum asked the council to support a change in the law to exempt lab testing as covered employment. According to the minutes of that meeting: State Representative Rick Gundrum addressed the Council regarding a proposed bill to clarify the employment sta ..read more