I was laid off

A layoff means a situation where your employer reduces your working hours and salary while your employment relationship remains in force. During a layoff, you may be entitled to earnings‑related daily allowance if the other eligibility conditions are met. To receive the allowance, your job search must remain active throughout the entire layoff period.

A layoff is a situation in which, while the employment relationship otherwise remains in force, the employer unilaterally decides to reduce your working hours and, as a result, your salary. During a layoff, you may be entitled to earnings‑related daily allowance if the other eligibility conditions are met. Having an active job search is also a requirement for receiving the allowance during a layoff.

Layoff requirements in brief

You can apply for earnings‑related daily allowance from the unemployment fund during both full‑time and part‑time layoff periods. A layoff can be implemented in several ways. A full‑time layoff means that the layoff lasts at least one full week. A part‑time layoff can be carried out either by reducing the number of working days per week or by shortening daily working hours. A layoff may be set for a fixed period or continue until further notice.

Different types of layoff-situations

In layoff situations, working time is assessed on a calendar‑week basis. A calendar week refers to the period from Monday to Sunday (for example, days from Tuesday to the following Monday do not constitute a calendar week).

For the right to earnings‑related daily allowance to arise, the working hours during the calendar week must not exceed 80% of the full‑time weekly working hours for that job.

1. Full-time layoff, where the employer lays you off for at least one full calendar week (Mon–Sun). You may be entitled to a full earnings-related allowance during a full-time layoff.
2. Reduced weekly working hours, or shortened working week. This refers to a situation in which the employer reduces the working hours of a full-time employee by one or more full days per calendar week. However, the layoff does not last for a full calendar week. In this case, an earning-related allowance may be paid in full for the layoff days.
3. Reduced daily working hours, or shortened working day. This refers to when the employer reduces the employee’s daily working hours on one or more days per week. In this case, an adjusted earnings-related allowance is paid.

If the type of layoff varies within the same calendar week, or if another adjustment factor applies to that week, the daily allowance is always paid as adjusted for that week. An adjustment factor may include, for example, wages paid for part‑time work or income from business activities.

Situations comparable to lay-off

In addition to an actual layoff, you may also be entitled to earnings‑related daily allowance in situations that are treated as comparable to a layoff. In the education sector, such layoff‑equivalent situations are fairly common for part‑time hourly teachers due to the way educational institutions operate. Examples include holiday periods during which the employer has no work to offer and does not pay salary.

Any unpaid and non‑teaching periods that are based on the institution’s established operating schedule must be recorded in the employment contract when the contract is made. If they are not specified in the contract, the employer must follow the standard layoff procedure for a full‑time employee to have the right to unemployment benefit during the employment relationship.

Occasionally, alongside layoffs, so‑called “volyntary leave” or “savings leave” arrangements may be used. In these cases, the employee voluntarily agrees to the leave. Earnings‑related daily allowance cannot be paid for such voluntary leave.

To receive daily allowance based on a layoff or a situation comparable to a layoff, you must register as a jobseeker with the employment authorities no later than on your first day of layoff.

Applying for layoff-period

Remember to report any changes in your situation immediately to both the unemployment fund and the employment authorities.

Lay-off and earnings-related daily allowance

A lay-off is a situation in which the employment relationship otherwise remains in force, but the employer unilaterally decides to reduce your working hours and, as a result, also your salary. During a lay-off, you may be entitled to earnings-related unemployment allowance, provided that the general conditions for payment of the allowance are met.

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