business backgrounder | education & workforce
SharedWork Helps Retain Employees and Avert Layoffs
For 35 years , Washington ’ s SharedWork program has given employers a way to plan ahead and avoid laying off employees .
Brian Mittge
SharedWork is a voluntary business sustainability program that provides flexibility to retain employees at reduced hours . Employers , who sign up for the optional program in advance , can reduce hours for employees during a rough patch . Those workers can apply for unemployment benefits based on their reduction of hours — with no full layoffs .
At A Glance
By reducing hours , the program helps support workers , helps employers keep valuable employees through a rough patch and helps communities avoid the issues that come with increased unemployment .
Nearly half of SharedWork participants said the program helped them reduce their payroll costs 11-20 percent , according to an Employment Security Department survey . More than 94 percent of respondents said their experience with the program had been positive .
Private- and public-sector employers of all sizes can apply to be part of SharedWork . For employees to qualify , they must be permanent workers , eligible for unemployment benefits and not salaried . They do not have to look for full-time work while collecting partial unemployment under SharedWork . Under the flexible program , worker hours and unemployment benefits can change from one week to the next .
SharedWork : www . SharedWorkWA . com
Overview Video : bit . ly / SharedWork-Video
During the depths of the Great Recession , as businesses across the country were laying off employees and closing their doors , Falco ’ s in Spokane found a lifeline .
One of their vendors told them about a well-established but little-known state layoff aversion program called SharedWork . It lets employers cut back worker hours , while those employees collect partial unemployment benefits to help make up those lost wages . The company can cut costs without losing valued workers . When business picks back up , the employer can bring those workers back up to full time .
For Falco ’ s , a family-owned supplier of fireplaces , barbecues and heating equipment , the program was just what it needed to make it through .
“ It could not have come at a more perfect time ,” Falco ’ s Office Manager Jill Spurbeck told Washington Business . “ It could not have been a more perfect situation .”
Without SharedWork , the company would have had to lay off skilled , long-term workers . Instead , it kept all its employees through the recession and the expansions since then .
Employers sign up in advance for SharedWork so that if business slows down , they can engage with the program . Rather than laying off employees , SharedWork allows a business to reduce hours of permanent employees by up to 50 percent . Those workers can file for
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