Benefits while you are unemployed

Transcription

1 Page: 1 of 11 Ersättning vid arbetslöshet Information om arbetslöshetsförsäkringen Engelska Benefits while you are unemployed Information about unemployment insurance. What is unemployment benefit? Unemployment insurance gives you who are a jobseeker financial compensation during the time it takes to search for and receive a new job. The insurance is relevant for everyone who works or has worked in Sweden. To be entitled to receive unemployment benefit, you must fulfil certain conditions. In addition to helping you in finding a new job, Arbetsförmedlingen also has the task of checking that you meet these conditions. It is your unemployment insurance fund that investigates and decides on whether you are entitled to receive unemployment benefit. The unemployment insurance funds You apply for unemployment benefit with your unemployment insurance fund. The unemployment insurance fund investigates and decides on whether you are entitled to receive unemployment benefit. The unemployment insurance fund pays out the unemployment benefit. The unemployment insurance fund answers questions concerning unemployment benefit. Arbetsförmedlingen You register as a jobseeker at Arbetsförmedlingen. Arbetsförmedlingen informs you about the general conditions that you must fulfil to be entitled to receive unemployment benefit and about any documents that do not meet the conditions of the unemployment insurance. Arbetsförmedlingen checks that you who are receiving unemployment benefit are looking for work and that you fulfil the general conditions of the unemployment insurance. Arbetsförmedlingen informs your unemployment insurance fund about any events that might affect your entitlement to receive benefits. When are you entitled to receive unemployment benefit? To receive unemployment benefit, you must fulfil the general conditions in section 9 of the Unemployment Insurance Act. You can see the general conditions below.

2 Page: 2 of 11 A jobseeker is entitled to receive unemployment benefit while unemployed if he/she: 1. is fit for work and not prevented from undertaking work on behalf of an employer for at least 3 hours every working day and on average at least 17 hours a week 2. is registered as a jobseeker at the public employment service 3. is also in other regards available to accept work You must be able to carry out and accept work of at least three hours duration every working day and of at least 17 hours duration per week. If Arbetsförmedlingen finds that you are not able to work to the extent required to receive unemployment benefit, we will inform your unemployment insurance fund of this. Your unemployment insurance fund then decides whether or not you are entitled to receive benefits. You must be registered at Arbetsförmedlingen during the period that you would like to receive unemployment benefit. When you register as a jobseeker at Arbetsförmedlingen, we will inform your unemployment insurance fund of this. Being available to accept work means that you should have the intention of working and that there is nothing preventing you from accepting work. What do you have to do to receive compensation? In this section, you can read about your responsibilities, from registering at Arbetsförmedlingen to starting a new job or taking part in another type of occupation. Draw up an individual action plan Together with Arbetsförmedlingen, you must create an action plan, which states what you must do to find work as quickly as possible. If you have reasons that are acceptable in accordance with the unemployment insurance that prevent you from seeking certain types of work, the action plan must state what you are to do to overcome these. If you do not participate in drawing up an action plan, we will inform your unemployment insurance fund of this. Submit an activity report You who receive or request unemployment benefit must submit an activity report once a month to Arbetsförmedlingen. The activity report must include activities that you have carried out in order to find a job or another occupation. If you do not submit your activity report in time, Arbetsförmedlingen will inform your unemployment insurance fund of this.

3 Page: 3 of 11 Visit and contact Arbetsförmedlingen and private providers You must visit and contact Arbetsförmedlingen or private providers at the agreed upon times, or if you are called to a meeting. Private providers is a collective term for the companies that carry out a supplementary placement service on behalf of Arbetsförmedlingen. If you do not attend a meeting that was booked, we will inform your unemployment insurance fund of this. Apply for suitable work that has been referred to you You must apply for suitable work that Arbetsförmedlingen has referred to you and be prepared to take any type of work that you could carry out. Unless you have reasons that are acceptable in accordance with your unemployment insurance, you must be prepared to apply for suitable work in the entire labour market. This applies from the first day on which you receive or request unemployment benefit. This means that you may have to commute daily, commute weekly, or move. If Arbetsförmedlingen finds that you are not prepared to accept suitable work, we will inform your unemployment insurance fund of this. Actively look for work Unemployment insurance is a career readjustment insurance and not an occupational insurance. You must be active in your job search, so that you can as quickly as possible find a new job. If Arbetsförmedlingen has reason to believe that you do not want to, or cannot, take a suitable job, we will inform your unemployment insurance fund of this. How is it decided if a job is suitable for you? To be entitled to receive unemployment benefit, you may have to look for other types of work than you have previously had. In this section, you can read about the assessment of what is a suitable job. Education and professional experience Consideration is given to your education and your professional experience, but a job can be considered to be suitable even if it does not match your education and professional experience. Competence If an employer considers your qualifications to be sufficient and wishes to employ you, the job is suitable, even if you do not think that you have sufficient knowledge or skills for the job.

4 Page: 4 of 11 Medical issues If you do not look for, or turn down, a job for medical reasons, you must support this with a doctor s certificate that describes why you cannot carry out this work. If you cannot provide supporting documentation for a medical reason, the job is suitable. Family reasons If a child, or someone else in your household, is dependent on your supervision and daily presence, and you cannot move, you can during a reasonable transitional period restrict your geographical search area. This is also the case if you are a single parent and would be dependent on the support of somebody in your area of residency in order to be able to manage a job. If you are living together with somebody who has a job that prevents him or her from being able to manage the household or move, this can also be a reason for restricting your geographical search area. You may restrict your job search to within daily commuting distance on the grounds of family reasons during a limited period. However, as an unemployed person, you must always act to enable yourself to look for work beyond daily commuting distance. After a reasonable transitional period, a job is considered to be suitable if you can visit your family home every week, that is, commute weekly. Journeys to and from work A job that has been referred to you, or for which you have received an offer, is suitable if you can travel between the place of work and your place of residence in a reasonable manner and at a reasonable cost. You must be prepared to commute daily by public transport or other means of transport, such as your own car. If it is possible, you are also required to try to adjust your working hours in order to take a job. New accommodation within daily commuting distance of the place of work If you can obtain accommodation within daily commuting distance of the place of work when your employment begins, the job is considered suitable, even if you cannot commute between the place of work and your original place of residence every day. If the job requires your family to move as well, the job is considered suitable if new accommodation can be found, in a reasonable period of time, within daily commuting distance of the place of work. Income from work If the income from the offered job, or the job that has been referred to you, is at least 90 percent of your established daily benefit, the job is considered to be suitable. If you have increased living costs as a result of maintaining two dwellings, these are to be taken into account in calculating the income.

5 Page: 5 of 11 Employee benefits must correspond to those in the collective agreement, or to the benefits that employees with your qualifications and tasks receive from comparable employers. Agreement regarding another job If you have already obtained a job when another job is referred to you, you can in certain cases turn down the job that is referred to you. However, you must be able to present a written certificate that you have already found employment, which must also begin within a month. Labour dispute If a permitted industrial action, such as a lockout or a strike, is taking place at the place of work, the job is not suitable. However, if only notice of action has been issued, the job is considered suitable. Facts about unemployment insurance This section provides more information about unemployment benefit. You can read about the requirements for becoming a member of an unemployment insurance fund, the amount that you must work in order to fulfil the work requirement, and the compensation that you can receive. How payment is made Unemployment benefit is paid as a basic amount or as an income-related benefit. The basic amount is based on the amount that you have worked, and not on how much you have earned. It is paid to you who are not a member of an unemployment insurance fund or who have not been a member for a sufficient period of time. The basic amount is paid at the earliest from the day that you turn 20. Income-related benefit is based on your previous income. To receive incomerelated benefit, you must have been a member of an unemployment insurance fund for at least twelve months (the membership requirement). You must also have fulfilled the work requirement during the period of your membership. Check your situation with your unemployment insurance fund. Who can be a member of an unemployment insurance fund? You can become a member of an unemployment insurance fund if, at the time of your application, you are working in the professional or vocational area covered by the insurance fund. If you are not working, you can become a member of the unemployment insurance fund within whose professional or vocational area you worked, when you last had a job.

6 Page: 6 of 11 There is also a supplementary unemployment insurance fund called Alfa-kassan. With Alfa-kassan, anyone who works or has worked can apply for unemployment benefit, regardless of professional or vocational area. If you have most recently worked in another EU/EEA country or in Switzerland, special regulations may apply. Contact your unemployment insurance fund for more information. Which unemployment insurance fund pays the benefit? You apply for unemployment benefit with the unemployment insurance fund that you are, or intend to be, a member of. If you are not a member of an unemployment insurance fund, and do not wish to apply for membership with one, you can still apply for unemployment insurance with Alfa-kassan. You can find the addresses of the unemployment insurance funds at arbetsformedlingen.se. At this address, you can also find the professions and the sectors that are covered by each unemployment insurance fund. What is the work requirement? To receive an income-related benefit, or the basic amount, you must fulfil a work requirement. This means that you must have worked at least 80 hours a month for at least six months during the last twelve months before you became unemployed. You can also fulfil the work requirement if you have worked at least 480 hours during six consecutive months, provided that you have worked at least 50 hours every month. In certain cases, you can also include up to two months military service or parental allowance as a period of work. If you have not been able to work during the twelve months preceding unemployment, this period can be extended (time that can be discounted). This includes if you have been sick, undertaken military service, studied full-time, or taken care of your own children. The time that can be discounted may be of at most five years duration in addition to the last twelve months. Check with your unemployment insurance fund regarding your own situation. Work in another EU/EEA country or in Switzerland can also, under certain circumstances, be included in order to fulfil the work requirement. Contact your unemployment insurance fund for more information.

7 Page: 7 of 11 You need these forms to apply for unemployment benefit: Notification of Unemployment (Anmälan om arbetslöshet). The form can be found at arbetsformedlingen.se Employer s Certificate (Arbetsgivarintyg). The form must be completed by your previous employer/employers. The certificate can be found at arbetsformedlingen.se Work Certificate for the Self-Employed (Arbetsintyg för företagare). The form is used by you who were self-employed prior to becoming unemployed. The certificate can be found at arbetsformedlingen.se Unemployment benefit cards (kassakort). On the unemployment benefit cards, you state what you have done during the preceding two weeks. Your unemployment insurance fund sends the cards to your home. For most of the unemployment insurance funds, the unemployment benefit cards can also be completed via the Internet. You may also have to submit a certificate of completed studies, a certificate concerning your entitlement to pension benefits, or other documentation. Contact your unemployment insurance fund for further information. During the period that you are receiving benefits, you must submit a new application form if this is requested by your unemployment insurance fund. You must also always notify your unemployment insurance fund if there are any changes to the information that you previously submitted, for example, if your ability to take a job changes, or if you begin working in your own business. How to apply for unemployment benefit Post or hand in your notification of unemployment and the other forms and certificates to your unemployment insurance fund. How much unemployment benefit is paid? Unemployment benefit is paid in the form of daily unemployment insurance benefit for at most five days a week (Monday Friday). The number of days for which the benefit is paid is reduced if you are sick or if you are prevented from accepting work for another reason. If you work for part of a week, you receive benefits for the period that you are unemployed. Your unemployment insurance fund then compares this with the average working hours that you had before you became unemployed. The average is calculated based on all twelve months before unemployment. The average includes months in which you did not work at all. How much you receive in income-related benefit depends on your average income during the twelve months before you became unemployed. During the first 200 days for which you receive benefit, your compensation is at most 80 percent of your previous average income. If you are still unemployed after 200 days of compensation, you can receive at most 70 percent of your previous average income in compensation.

8 Page: 8 of 11 The highest daily unemployment insurance benefit during the entire benefit period is 680 SEK per day. The basic amount, which is not income related, is at most 320 SEK per day. If your average working hours prior to unemployment were less than full time, the basic amount is reduced. The size of the maximum daily unemployment insurance benefit and of the basic amount is decided by the government. You who transfer from income-related unemployment benefit to the Youth Job Programme receive activity support at 80 percent of your average income, until you have used 100 days of compensation (unemployment benefit and activity support added together). After 100 days of compensation, you receive 70 percent of your average income, and after 200 days of compensation, you receive 65 percent of your average income. It is your unemployment insurance fund that decides on whether you are entitled to unemployment benefit and which benefit you will receive. The daily unemployment insurance benefit is liable to tax and is pensionable. For how long is unemployment benefit paid? You can receive benefit for a maximum of 300 days of compensation (the benefit period). If you are a parent of children aged less than 18, you can receive compensation for a maximum of 450 days. To be approved for a new benefit period, you must fulfil a new work requirement. Unemployment benefit is coordinated with the activity support that you can receive when you participate in labour market programmes. Consequently, days with activity support are included in the benefit period. For you who have part-time work and are partly unemployed, special rules apply. You can have up to a total of 75 days of compensation during the weeks that you work. The remainder of the days in the benefit period must be during weeks in which you are completely unemployed. For further information, contact your unemployment insurance fund. Qualifying period There is a qualifying period of seven days for unemployment insurance. Consequently, you can only start receiving benefit after you have been unemployed for seven days during which you would otherwise have received benefit. Days Monday to Friday can count as qualifying days. Every new benefit period begins with a qualifying period of seven days.

9 Page: 9 of 11 Three grounds for taking action If you mismanage your job search, prolong your period of unemployment, or cause your unemployment, Arbetsförmedlingen must notify your unemployment insurance fund of this. It is then your unemployment insurance fund that investigates and decides on whether the matter affects your unemployment benefit. The three grounds for taking action are independent of each other. 1. You mismanage your job search Your unemployment insurance fund can decide to issue a warning if you: without an acceptable reason, did not participate in drawing up an individual action plan without an acceptable reason, did not submit an activity report to Arbetsförmedlingen within the designated time without an acceptable reason, did not visit or contact Arbetsförmedlingen, or a private provider, at the agreed upon, or in other way determined, time without an acceptable reason, did not apply for suitable work that had been referred to you did not actively look for suitable work If you mismanage your job search on repeated occasions during the same benefit period, your unemployment insurance fund may decide to suspend your entitlement to receive unemployment benefit. The period of your suspension is one day of compensation on the second occasion, five days of compensation on the third occasion and ten days of compensation on the fourth occasion. If your unemployment insurance fund finds that you have mismanaged your job search on a fifth occasion during the same benefit period, you are not entitled to receive benefit until you fulfil a new work requirement. 2. You prolong your period of unemployment Your unemployment insurance fund can decide to suspend your entitlement to unemployment benefit for five days of compensation if you, without an acceptable reason, have: refused an offer of suitable work by your behaviour, caused an employment not to have come about refused a referral to a labour market programme that provides activity support If you prolong your period of unemployment on repeated occasions in the same benefit period, your unemployment insurance fund can decide to suspend you from your entitlement to benefit for ten days of compensation on the second occasion and for 45 days of compensation on the third occasion. If your unemployment insurance fund finds that you have prolonged the period of your unemployment on a fourth occasion during the same benefit period, you are not entitled to receive compensation until you have fulfilled a new work requirement.

10 Page: 10 of You cause your unemployment Your unemployment insurance fund can decide to suspend your entitlement to unemployment benefit for 45 days of compensation if you: have left your job without an acceptable reason have been dismissed from your job on the grounds of unacceptable behaviour without an acceptable reason, left a labour market programme that provides activity support acted in such a manner that Arbetsförmedlingen has withdrawn a referral to a labour market programme that provides activity support If you cause your unemployment again in the same benefit period, you can again be suspended for 45 or for 20 days of compensation. You are suspended for 20 days of compensation if it is likely that the work or the labour market programme would have been of at most 10 days duration. If the unemployment development fund finds that you have caused your unemployment on a third occasion in the same benefit period, you are not entitled to receive compensation until you have fulfilled a new work requirement. Get in touch with us You must always attend meetings that have been booked. The date and time may be determined by Arbetsförmedlingen sending a notice to attend, or booking a time in another manner. Remember that you must also be accessible by telephone during the time that you and Arbetsförmedlingen have agreed. If you do not attend a meeting that has been booked, or are not accessible in accordance with an agreement, we will notify your unemployment insurance fund of this. By maintaining contact with us, you make it possible for us to support you in your job search. Do not forget to inform both your unemployment insurance fund and Arbetsförmedlingen if there are any changes in your situation that affect your ability to look for work. If you change your telephone number or address, or if you go away, you must tell us. We may need to contact you quickly with an offer of work, information about programmes, or an invitation to activities at Arbetsförmedlingen that can be valuable to you in finding work. Give us a call at Ring and speak directly with an employment officer. Available weekdays 8 am to 10 pm and on Saturdays and Sundays 10 am to 4 pm. During these times, you can also chat with us via our website.

11 Page: 11 of 11 Visit arbetsformedlingen.se Find inspiration and help via the largest job site in Sweden. Contact your nearest employment office You can find the address on our website. Meet us on Facebook facebook.com/arbetsformedlingen Further information about unemployment insurance Arbetsförmedlingen s website at arbetsformedlingen.se The website of the Swedish Federation of Unemployment Insurance Funds (SO) at samorg.org The website of the Swedish Unemployment Insurance Board at iaf.se The Unemployment Insurance Act (1997:238) The ordinance (1997:835) on unemployment insurance The ordinance (2000:628) on labour market policy operations The regulations of the Swedish Unemployment Insurance Board (IAFFS)