Benefits May 12, 2010

Lynch Inks NH Jobs Bill

May 12, 2010 (PLANSPONSOR.com) – New Hampshire Governor John Lynch has signed into law a bill that uses state jobless benefits to make up for a portion of wages lost when employers and workers agree to a reduced schedule instead of layoffs.
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A Lynch news release said the advantages of that portion of Senate Bill 501 are that employees retain their jobs, their health insurance, and most of their income while employers keep the skilled labor needed to recover from the recession. The state avoids the added cost of additional unemployed workers needing state services, the Lynch announcement said.

Also included in the bill is a mandate for New Hampshire job agencies to assess the job skills of all newly unemployed workers, which the Lynch news release said will allow workers to take the results of those assessments to potential employers.

The new law also doubles the state’s Job Training Fund to $2 million a year in 2011 and allows the state to use those funds to train unemployed workers.

“Our number one focus must continue to be helping companies and workers recover from this recession,” Lynch said, in the news announcement. “We cannot and we will not rest until everyone who wants a job can get a job. With this legislation, we are providing businesses and citizens with new help to get back to work and to recover from the recession.”

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