Ford and Visteon to File Jobless Claims for Its Hourly Workers

DETROIT, July 30 -- Two of Michigan's largest employers have agreed to file unemployment claims on behalf of their hourly workers during lack of work layoffs.

"Ford Motor Company and Visteon have joined DaimlerChrysler (DCX) in partnering with the State of Michigan in a new program that allows the three employers to file unemployment claims on behalf of their workers during plant shutdowns or other mass layoffs," Jack Wheatley, director of Michigan's Bureau of Workers' & Unemployment Compensation (BW&UC), announced.

With the partnership, the three companies can electronically file unemployment claims for employees laid off from any of their Michigan facilities.

"Our agreement with Ford and Visteon covers hourly, full-time workers who are idled due to a lack of work," Wheatley pointed out, "while the program with DaimlerChrysler covers all hourly and salaried workers."

The Ford and Visteon agreements went into effect on June 30, while the DCX agreement became effective in late May.

"The process, which we call employer filed claims, will be a major convenience to workers with the three companies," Wheatley said. "It will save them from having to apply in person at one of our offices.

"It will also prevent overcrowding in our offices during large layoffs or shutdowns with any of these three employers, allowing our staff to serve others who are applying for unemployment benefits," Wheatley noted.

With the employer filed claims program, the participating company will submit to BW&UC an electronic file listing those laid off during a shutdown or mass layoff. The bureau will process the information and file new or additional claims for the workers. The bureau will then send notices to affected workers, notifying them of their eligibility for benefits.

The laid off workers will be required to phone the bureau's interactive voice response system -- called MARVIN -- once every two weeks to certify that they are unemployed and meet the unemployment program's eligibility requirements.

The BW&UC is working to expand its employer filed claim process and is in discussions with General Motors and Delphi. Recent changes to the bureau's administrative rules will require larger employers in the state with a history of mass layoffs to file unemployment claims on behalf of their employees.

The Bureau of Workers' & Unemployment Compensation is a bureau within the Michigan Department of Consumer & Industry Services, the state's primary licensing and regulatory department.

Bureau of Workers' & Unemployment Compensation news releases are available at the bureau's website (www.michigan.gov/bwuc/).