Kokua Line: Can striking workers collect unemployment?

Dec. 17—Question : I am part of a union and was recently told that if we were to go on strike, we would be able to collect unemployment insurance.

Question : I am part of a union and was recently told that if we were to go on strike, we would be able to collect unemployment insurance. I was under the impression that going on strike meant a voluntary leave, so I would be disqualified to apply for unemployment. Could you clarify which is true ?

Answer : A striking worker may be eligible for unemployment insurance in Hawaii if the state Department of Labor and Industrial Relations determines that no "work stoppage " exists at the struck employer—in other words, if the business is able to operate normally despite the strike. The claimant also must have earned qualifying wages during a base period, a standard UI requirement.

The initial eligibility determination "is not based on whether or not someone is on strike but on whether there is a work stoppage at the employer, " Bill Kunstman, a spokesperson for the state DLIR, said in a telephone interview Friday. "Say there is a business operation with 10 people and enough people strike so that the business can't operate, then there's a work stoppage and the people would not be eligible for unemployment insurance. However, if the strike does not curtail operations, striking workers may be eligible for UI, but then that would be decided on an individual, case-by-case basis " as with any UI claim, he said.

The DLIR website explains that a work stoppage refers to "a substantial curtailment of the employer's business operations at the employer's establishment rather than the unemployment on the part of the striking employee. The courts have ruled that a 20 % to 30 % reduction in the business operations constitutes a work stoppage. Information will be obtained from your employer and from your union representatives to make this determination. If no work stoppage exists and you meet all other requirements, benefits will be allowed."

Other factors also might be considered, according to the website, which advises striking workers who file UI claims to report strike pay, sick pay, vacation pay and other income. Read more at.

Q : Is there a waiting period for UI again ?

A : Yes, of one week, and it begins once you have filed for UI, so file as soon as you are laid off. "Don't wait a week to submit your initial claim, " Kunstman said. The waiting period had been waived during the COVID-19 emergency.

Q : Can you provide an update on the status of the Likelike Highway repaving project ? When will the Kaneohe-bound lanes be completed, and when will that route be open to all commuters ?

A : "There are some needed closures to address areas of new pavement of Likelike Highway between the Wilson Tunnel and Emmeline Place that have not met specifications, " Shelly Kunishige, a spokesperson for the state Department of Transportation, said Friday.

Work in the Honolulu-bound lanes was scheduled to occur Saturday "in conjunction with the full closure for Wilson Tunnel ceiling repairs. The work on the Kaneohe-bound lanes will be scheduled in January 2024, " she said.

Auwe Something must be done about homeless people panhandling on the Pali Highway off-ramp. Homeless people approach vehicles that have entered the Pali Highway off-ramp on the Honolulu side to beg for money. They walk between the cars, causing a very dangerous situation. This off-ramp is part of the freeway and pedestrians are not allowed on the freeway. The Honolulu Police Department has not enforced this. The homeless also sleep on the side of the guardrail.—J.S.

Mahalo On Wednesday, I was at Sam's Club shopping for items to donate to my parish Outreach Ministry. When I returned home, I could not locate my cellphone. When I called my cellphone number, the clerk at Sam's Club stated that someone had turned in my phone. To the kind and thoughtful angel who turned in my cellphone, a million mahalos. May you be blessed abundantly for your thoughtfulness.—Grateful senior citizen------Write to Kokua Line at Honolulu Star-Advertiser, 500 Ala Moana Blvd., Suite 7-500, Honolulu, HI 96813 ; call 808-529-4773 ; or email kokualine @staradvertiser.com.------