Claims Information (continued)

Claims for Attached Workers

What is an Attached Claim?
An attached claim for unemployment benefits must be filed for an individual who works or is paid "less than three customary scheduled full-time days" or less than 60% of the customary scheduled full-time hours. Any other wages or pay including bonus, vacation pay, and holiday pay must be applied in determining whether the three days or 60% threshold has been met. When full-time work is temporarily unavailable, employers must, by Employment Security Commission Regulation, file unemployment insurance attached claims for the affected workers.

Methods Employers Can Use To File Attached Claims
An employer shall file unemployment insurance claims for attached workers within seven days of the week-ending date of the payroll week in which the employees worked less than full-time because full-time work was not available. By completing Form NCUI 501, Benefit Claim for Attached Worker, the employer certifies that the worker is still attached to the employer's payroll, but during the payroll week, worked less than 60% of his/her normal hours. Employers can file unemployment insurance claims for their workers who are on temporary layoff by tape, diskette, or the internet in lieu of paper Form NCUI 501. Claims filed, regardless of the method used, must be submitted directly to the Claims Department in Raleigh for processing.

Employers who want more information about electronic claims filing should contact the Intrastate Unit in the State office by telephone at (919) 707-1237 or by FAX at (919) 733-1370. To obtain personal computer software or paper Forms NCUI 501, employers may call the office of the Assistant UI Director for Benefits Administration at (919) 707-1290.

When Should a Worker Report to an Employment Security Commission Office to File an Attached Claim?
If a worker is an alien, is receiving a pension other than Social Security, has military or Federal civil service wages in the past 18 months, has worked in another state during the past 18 months, or if there are circumstances which raise an eligibility question, the employer shall give a paper Form NCUI 501 to the worker and instruct the worker to report to the nearest Employment Security Commission Office to file the claim.

What Information Should an Employer Report When Filing Attached Claims?
Wages reported on Form NCUI 501 should reflect the total amount of earnings for the week(s) in question, including any earnings which were paid or payable with respect to any part of that week(s), holiday pay, vacation pay, sick pay and any part-time or odd job earnings.

Even though Form NCUI 501 may show excessive earnings (earnings which equal or exceed the claimant's weekly benefit amount and earning allowance) for the payroll week involved, it may still be used to establish a benefit year. The week, however, cannot be used for waiting period credit, nor can it be paid.

How Do Vacation Weeks Affect A Worker's Eligibility for Benefits?
An employer may declare up to two weeks (of at least three days each) during a calendar year as unpaid vacation weeks. A worker is not eligible for unemployment insurance benefits during any declared unpaid vacation week. Any worker who receives paid vacation is considered to be employed during that time and is therefore not eligible for unemployment benefits.

How Should An Employer Notify Workers of The Vacation Week(s)?
While an employer is not required to give workers written notification of the vacation week(s), the workers must be informed before the vacation period begins. Form NCUI 524, Certificate of coverage for and Notice to Workers, must be posted in the employer's workplace.

Filing Attached Claims Via Magnetic Media
Employers may use magnetic media or Internet file, to report attached (temporary layoff) claims information to the Employment Security Commission. Using either of these methods will reduce errors, paper, postage and expense.

Regulation No. 9.10 requires any employer or employing unit with 100 or more employees to report attached claims information by magnetic media. Filing electronically meets this requirement. The Commission provides load instructions and software at no cost to the employer. The Windows program (ESC TRACS) is written in Visual Basic and incorporates options for filing claims data by diskette or Internet. This program is intended to operate on a workstation which is operating Windows 95 or higher. If filing by Internet, Netscape or Internet Explorer 4.x (or higher) is recommended.

Updating the employee database file for each week of layoff can be accomplished with relative ease. Employees may be selected for updating by social security number, employee last name sequence, or assigned department.

Multiple employer account numbers and weeks may be reported on a single diskette. Claims data may be transmitted at any time by Internet. Data may be uploaded from a file created in a format prescribed by the agency or a file created by using agency software. Individual layoff data may also be keyed on-line. Claims data received before 5 PM is processed nightly, Monday through Friday, and checks are mailed to eligible claimants the next workday.

Employers may begin using the software to report attached claims immediately. Prior approval or test data is not required. Employers who prefer to file claims data by Internet may login to Business Services at ESC's website, using the ESC account number and assigned PIN. If you have forgotten your PIN for Internet access, please call (919) 707-1237 and request that it be reset. In addition,a supply of Form NCUI 517X, Information about Unemployment Insurance for Workers on Temporary Layoff, or Form NCUI 517Z, Information about Unemployment Insurance for Totally Separated Workers, should be ordered or downloaded. This form should be given to each employee on the first week of unemployment that initiates a new benefit year.

The form NCUI 517X is in MS Word 6.0 Format.  Download the Word Viewer to view and print this form from your PC.

The Temporary Layoff Claims Filing Windows Software Program
Load Instructions and Temporary Layoff Claims Filing Record Layouts and Requirements are written in Microsoft Word 6.0 format. Temporary Layoff Claims Filing Record Layouts and Requirements user guide is available for those employers who prefer to create their own database. This particular guide includes information on data to be submitted as well as the required format.

Tapes are returned to the employer after processing; however, reporting diskettes are not returned.

An extract program, DBEXTRAC, which converts records from DOS versions 1.20 and 1.30 Temporary Layoff Programs to the Windows program, is available upon request. Rekeying data is not necessary.

Note: Employers who wish to convert existing database(s) from DOS for use in the Windows environment, will need to install both the WINFTL and DBEXTRAC software programs. After successfully converting and importing claim records, the DBEXTRAC program and program group can be deleted.

Employers who prefer to order the software, load instructions and/or record layouts in lieu of downloading may call (919)707-1290.