Employment-Related Benefits

Before you leave your job, you need to know the benefits for which you are eligible by law. Your
employer may also opt to provide additional benefits other than those mandated by state or federal law. You should ask about severance pay, accrued vacation, overtime and sick pay, pension benefits, and eligibility for unemployment insurance. Request information on continuance of health and life insurance benefits. If you have any questions regarding what is offered, check with your State Department of Labor for clarification.

If you live in one state and work in another, or if you have moved, in general, you should file your unemployment claim with the state where you worked. If you worked in a state other than the one where you live or if you worked in multiple states, the state unemployment office where you now live can provide information about how to file your claim with other states.

Before you file, check with your state unemployment office to determine the best way to open a
claim. Requirements may vary from state to state, but, here is a sampling of the information you will need to have available when filing for unemployment:

For more information contact your state unemployment office. You can visit the following link for
more information: State Unemployment Directories

COBRA (Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act) gives employees and their families who lose their health benefits the option to continue group health benefits provided by their group health plan for limited periods of time (usually up to 18 months) under certain circumstances such as voluntary or involuntary job loss, reduction in the hours worked, transition between jobs, death, divorce, and other life events.

Group health plans which cover 20 or more employees are required to provide COBRA benefits; however, the individual who is entitled to coverage is responsible for paying the full health insurance premium – up to 102 percent of the cost to the plan.

For more information visit the Department of Labor web site at: COBRA Benefits – Dept. of Labo

Being laid off can have a devastating impact on your budget and your credit. Union Privilege has a program to assist with credit and budget counseling. Union members can get a free consumer credit counseling session, as well as budget analysis and money management advice to ensure that you are on the road to financial recovery. Additionally, certified, experienced consumer credit counseling advisors listen and assess your needs and help you to develop a plan of action for debt repayment that can follow to help eliminate your debt. More information on Union Privilege’s program can be found at the following link: UnionPlus Credit Counseling.

Speed up your job search by using job search engines to look for jobs on the Internet. Select sites
that are fire and EMS specific. This way you will be able to identify the types of jobs you want and
where you want to work. There are two sites that are IAFF and union specific that you may want to
check.

IAFF Job Center: The IAFF has created an on-line job center that lists openings in fire department
across the United States and Canada, as well as employment opportunities at the IAFF, other labor
union and municipal, state or federal agencies. The link to the IAFF Job Center is here.

Union Jobs: The Union Jobs Clearinghouse, is a central site for posting the open positions in unions
and socially allied organizations that are now accepting applications. The link to the Union Jobs
Clearinghouse is: UnionJobs.com.