reglab/statecodes huggingface dataset:
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 21A. Unemployment Compensation › Article 5. Employer Coverage and Responsibility › §21A-5-17b. Comity in Collection of Past-Due Payments and Overpayments

The courts of this state shall recognize and enforce liabilities for unemployment contributions imposed by other states which extend a like comity to this state. The commissioner in the name of this state is hereby empowered to sue in the courts of any other jurisdiction which extends such comity, to collect unemployment contributions and interest due this state. The officials of other states which by statute or otherwise extend a like comity to this state may sue in the courts of this state, to collect for such contributions and interest and penalties if any, due such state; in any such case the commissioner of the Bureau of Employment Programs of this state may through his legal assistant or assistants institute and conduct such suit for such other state.
Notwithstanding any other provisions of this chapter, the commissioner may recover an overpayment of benefits paid to any individual under this state or another state law or under an unemployment benefit program of the United States.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 21A. Unemployment Compensation › Article 5. Employer Coverage and Responsibility › §21A-5-17c. Service of Process on Nonresident Employer

If an employer is not a resident of West Virginia, was a resident but has left the State of West Virginia or is a corporation not authorized to do business in this state and for which employer services are performed in insured work within the State of West Virginia and liability for payment of unemployment compensation contributions is due and payable to this state under the provisions of the West Virginia unemployment compensation law, such employer shall be deemed to appoint the Secretary of State of West Virginia, or his successor in office, to be the employer's true and lawful attorney upon whom may be served all lawful process in any action or any proceeding for all purposes under this chapter and when served as hereinafter provided such service shall have the same force, effect and validity as if said nonresident employer were personally served with summons and complaint in this state.
Service shall be made by leaving the original and two copies of both the summons and complaint, and the fee required by section two, article one, chapter fifty-nine of this code, with the Secretary of State, or in his office, and said service shall be sufficient upon said nonresident. In the event any such summons and complaint is so served on the Secretary of State he shall immediately cause one of the copies of the summons and complaint to be sent by registered or certified mail, return receipt requested, to the employer at the latter's last known or reasonably ascertainable address. The employer's return receipt or, if such registered or certified mail is returned to the Secretary of State refused by the addressee or for any other reason is undelivered, such mail showing thereon the stamp of the post-office department that delivery has been refused, or other reason for nondelivery, shall be appended to the original summons and complaint, and filed by the Secretary of State in the clerk's office of the court from which said process issued.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 21A. Unemployment Compensation › Article 5. Employer Coverage and Responsibility › §21A-5-18. Priorities

(1) In the event of any distribution of an employer's assets pursuant to an order of the court under a law of this state, payments then or thereafter due and interest allowable thereon shall be paid in full prior to all other claims except taxes and claims for wages. Wage claims in excess of $250 per claimant or earned more than six months before the commencement of the proceeding, shall not be entitled to priority.
(2) In the event of an employer's adjudication in bankruptcy, judicially confirmed extension proposal, or composition, under the Federal Bankruptcy Act of one thousand eight hundred ninety-eight, as amended, claims for payments then or thereafter due and interest thereon, which have not been reduced to lien, shall be entitled to such priority as is provided in said bankruptcy act for taxes due any state of the United States.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 21A. Unemployment Compensation › Article 5. Employer Coverage and Responsibility › §21A-5-19. Refunds

Within two years after the date on which payment of contribution, or interest thereon, is made, an employer, who has paid such payment or interest, may make application for:
(1) An adjustment thereof in connection with subsequent payments.
(2) A refund thereof if adjustment cannot be made.
If the commissioner determines that payments and interest were erroneously collected, he shall make the adjustment, without interest, in connection with subsequent payments of the employer, or if such adjustment cannot be made, refund the amount of the payments erroneously collected, without interest, from the clearing account of the unemployment compensation fund, and the amount of the interest erroneously collected, from the employment security special administration fund.
For like cause and within the same period the commissioner, on his own initiative, may make an adjustment or refund: Provided, That nothing in this chapter shall be construed as permitting a cash refund of any contribution required under the law in effect when such contribution became due.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 21A. Unemployment Compensation › Article 5. Employer Coverage and Responsibility › §21A-5-20. Qualifying Wages for Regular Benefits of Newly Covered Workers During Transition Period on the Basis of Previously Uncovered Services

Wages for insured work includes wages paid for previously uncovered service. For the purposes of this section, the term "previously uncovered services" means services:
(1) Which were not employment as defined in section sixteen, article one-a of this chapter, or by election pursuant to section three, article five of this chapter, at any time during the one-year period ending December 31, 1975; and
(2) Which (A) Are agricultural labor, or domestic services as defined in subdivisions (12) and (13), section sixteen, article one-a of this chapter or (B) are services performed by an employee of this state or a political subdivision thereof, or a nonprofit educational institution as provided in paragraphs (B) and (C), subdivision (9), section sixteen, article one-a of this chapter; except to the extent that assistance under Title II of the Emergency Jobs and Unemployment Assistance Act of 1974 was paid on the basis of such services.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 21A. Unemployment Compensation › Article 6. Employee Eligibility; Benefits › §21A-6-1. Eligibility Qualifications

An unemployed individual shall be eligible to receive benefits only if the commissioner finds that:
(1) He or she has registered for work at and thereafter continues to report at an employment office in accordance with the regulations of the commissioner;
(2) He or she has made a claim for benefits in accordance with the provisions of article seven of this chapter and has furnished his or her Social Security number, or numbers if he or she has more than one such number;
(3) He or she is able to work and is available for full-time work for which he or she is fitted by prior training or experience and is doing that which a reasonably prudent person in his or her circumstances would do in seeking work;
(4) He or she has been totally or partially unemployed during his or her benefit year for a waiting period of one week prior to the week for which he or she claims benefits for total or partial unemployment;
(5) He or she has within his or her base period been paid wages for employment equal to not less than $2,200 and must have earned wages in more than one quarter of his or her base period or, if he or she is not eligible under his or her base period, has within his or her alternative base period been paid wages for employment equal to not less than $2,200 and must have earned wages in more than one quarter of his or her alternative base period; and
(6) He or she participates in reemployment services, such as job search assistance services, if the individual has been determined to be likely to exhaust regular benefits and needs reemployment services pursuant to a profiling system established by the commissioner, unless the commissioner determines that:
(a) The individual has completed such services; or
(b) There is justifiable cause for the claimant's failure to participate in such services.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 21A. Unemployment Compensation › Article 6. Employee Eligibility; Benefits › §21A-6-1b. Requalification Requirement

An individual filing a claim for benefits which, if otherwise valid, would establish a subsequent benefit year, in order to be eligible for benefits for such subsequent benefit year, must have returned to work and earned wages in covered employment after the beginning of his previous benefit year equal to or exceeding an amount eight times his weekly benefit rate amount established for the previous benefit year, and be otherwise eligible under the provisions of this article and of this chapter.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 21A. Unemployment Compensation › Article 6. Employee Eligibility; Benefits › §21A-6-1c. Voluntary Withholding Program

(a) An individual filing a new claim for unemployment compensation shall, at the time of filing the claim, be advised by the appropriate bureau employee that:
(1) Unemployment compensation is subject to federal and state income tax;
(2) Requirements exist pertaining to estimated tax payments;
(3) The individual may elect to have federal and state income tax deducted and withheld from the individual's payment of unemployment compensation at the appropriate federal and state withholding rate; and
(4) The individual may change a previously elected withholding status.
(b) Amounts deducted and withheld from unemployment compensation shall remain in the unemployment fund until transferred to the appropriate federal or state taxing authority as payment of income tax.
(c) The commissioner shall follow all procedures specified by the United States Department of Labor, federal Internal Revenue Service and the West Virginia State Tax Division pertaining to the deducting and withholding of income tax.
(d) Amounts shall be deducted and withheld in accordance with the priorities established in rules developed by the commissioner.
(e) Effective date. -- The amendments made to this section regarding withholding for state income tax shall be effective for payments made on and after January 1, 2010.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 21A. Unemployment Compensation › Article 6. Employee Eligibility; Benefits › §21A-6-2. Waiting Period Construed

If the benefit year ends during a period of total unemployment for any individual, such individual shall serve a new waiting period of one week before benefits accruing in the new benefit year shall be payable.
During the waiting period, the individual must be eligible in all respects, except for the requirements of subsection (2) of section one of this article. No week shall be counted as the waiting period week if benefits have been paid with respect to such week.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 21A. Unemployment Compensation › Article 6. Employee Eligibility; Benefits › §21A-6-4. Individual Not Denied Benefits by Receiving Vocational Training

Notwithstanding any other provision in this article, no individual shall be denied unemployment compensation benefits because of his receiving training as part of an area vocational program, or similar program, which has as its object the training of unemployed individuals in new occupational skills: Provided, That such individual's training and training institution are approved by the commissioner, and such individual produces evidence of his continued attendance and satisfactory progress at such training institution when requested to do so by the commissioner.
Notwithstanding any other provisions of this chapter, no otherwise eligible individual shall be denied benefits for any week because he or she is in training approved under section 236(a)(1) of the Federal Trade Act of 1974, nor shall such individual be denied benefits by reason of leaving work to enter such training, if the work left is not suitable employment, or because of the application of the provisions of this chapter or any applicable federal unemployment compensation law relating to availability for work, active search for work or refusal to work to any such week in training.
For purposes of this section, the term "suitable employment" means with respect to an individual, work of a substantially equal or higher skill level than the individual's past adversely affected employment as defined for purposes of the Federal Trade Act of 1974 and wages for such work at not less than eighty percent of the individual's average weekly wage as determined for the purposes of the Federal Trade Act of 1974.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 21A. Unemployment Compensation › Article 6. Employee Eligibility; Benefits › §21A-6-4a. National Guard or Reserve Training Not to Be Considered Employment; Such Individual Not Unavailable for Work; Remuneration for Training Not to Be Deducted From Unemployment Compensation Benefit

Notwithstanding any other provision of this chapter to the contrary, the following provisions apply to an individual who is a member of the state National Guard or other reserve component of the United States Armed Forces:
(1) If such individual is otherwise unemployed under the provisions of this chapter, he may not be considered to be employed because he is engaged in inactive duty for training;
(2) Such individual may not be considered unavailable for work by reason of his inactive duty for training; and
(3) Remuneration which the individual receives for participating in inactive duty for training may not be deducted from the unemployment compensation benefit to which he is otherwise entitled.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 21A. Unemployment Compensation › Article 6. Employee Eligibility; Benefits › §21A-6-5. Considerations in Determining if Work Is Suitable

In determining whether work is suitable for an individual, the commissioner shall consider:
(1) The degree of risk involved to the individual's health, safety, and morals.
(2) The individual's physical fitness and prior training.
(3) His experience and prior earnings.
(4) His length of unemployment.
(5) His prospects of securing local work in his customary occupation.
(6) The distance of the available work from his residence: Provided, however, That the distance from his new residence shall not be considered in determining suitable work if such distance from available work was created as the result of the individual voluntarily changing his residence to a locality other than that locality in which he resided at the time he voluntarily quit his last employment without good cause involving fault on the part of the employer.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 21A. Unemployment Compensation › Article 6. Employee Eligibility; Benefits › §21A-6-6. New Work Not Deemed Suitable

Notwithstanding any other provisions of this chapter, no work shall be deemed suitable and benefits shall not be denied to an individual, otherwise eligible, for refusing to accept new work under any of the following conditions:
(1) If the position offered is vacant due directly to a strike, lockout, or other labor dispute.
(2) If the wages, hours, or other conditions of the work offered are substantially less favorable to the individual than those prevailing for similar work in the locality.
(3) If as a condition of being employed the individual would be required to join a company union or to resign from or refrain from joining any bona fide labor organization.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 21A. Unemployment Compensation › Article 6. Employee Eligibility; Benefits › §21A-6-11. Benefit Rate -- Partial Unemployment

An eligible individual who is partially unemployed in any week shall, upon claim therefor filed within such time and in such manner as the commissioner may by regulation prescribe, be paid benefits for such partial unemployment in an amount equal to his weekly benefit rate, as determined in accordance with section ten of this article, less that part of wages from any source payable or bonus paid to him with respect to such week which is in excess of $60: Provided, That such amount of benefits if not a multiple of $1 shall be computed to the next lowest multiple of $1. Such partial benefits shall be paid to such individual for the week for which he is claiming benefits without regard to the provisions of subdivision (1), section one of this article.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 21A. Unemployment Compensation › Article 6. Employee Eligibility; Benefits › §21A-6-12. Suspension of Partial Benefit Rights

If at any time the unemployment compensation fund, including the trust fund, clearing account and benefit account, and excluding therefrom an amount, estimated by the commissioner, equal to the sum of the benefit liabilities then accrued and unpaid, shall fall below the sum of $5 million, the commissioner, with the concurrence of a majority of the advisory council, and with the consent and approval of the Governor, may suspend the right to receive benefit for periods of partial unemployment not then completed, and no right to benefit for periods of partial unemployment completed or occurring during the period of such suspension shall then or thereafter accrue. At any time subsequent to such suspension the commissioner, with the concurrence of a majority of the advisory council, and with the consent and approval of the Governor, may rescind, and whenever the unemployment compensation fund, including the trust fund, clearing account and benefit account, and excluding therefrom an amount, estimated by the commissioner, equal to the sum of the benefit liabilities then accrued and unpaid, reaches the sum of $10 million, the commissioner shall rescind such suspension as to periods of partial unemployment not then completed.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 21A. Unemployment Compensation › Article 6. Employee Eligibility; Benefits › §21A-6-13. Computation of Wage Credits; Determination of Maximum Benefits

The commissioner shall compute wage credits for each individual by crediting him with the wages paid to him for employment by employers during his base period. The maximum total amount of benefits payable to any eligible individual during any benefit year shall not exceed the amount appearing in column (D) on line indicating individual's wage class, of Table A, in this article hereinabove contained.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 21A. Unemployment Compensation › Article 6. Employee Eligibility; Benefits › §21A-6-14. Payment of Benefits Upon Decease of Claimant

Accrued benefits due and unpaid on claims filed prior to decease of a claimant may, in the discretion of the commissioner, be paid, without letters of administration, to the surviving spouse, children, or parents of the deceased, in the order of priority enumerated.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 21A. Unemployment Compensation › Article 6. Employee Eligibility; Benefits › §21A-6-17. Food Stamp Overissuance Intercept of Unemployment Benefits

(a) Notwithstanding the provisions of section two, article ten of this chapter, the commissioner shall deduct and withhold from any unemployment compensation payable to an individual that owes an uncollected overissuance of food stamp coupons, as defined under subsection (f) of this section:
(1) The amount, if any, determined pursuant to a written agreement between the individual and the Department of Health and Human Resources under Section 13(c)(3)(A) of the Food Stamp Act of 1977, as codified in 7 U.S.C. 2022(c)(3)(A), and submitted to the commissioner; or
(2) Any amount otherwise required to be deducted and withheld from such unemployment compensation pursuant to legal process, as that term is used in Section 13(c)(3)(B) of the Food Stamp Act of 1977, as codified in 7 U.S.C. 2022(c)(3)(B) properly served upon the commissioner.
(b) Any amount deducted and withheld under subsection (a) of this section shall be paid by the commissioner to the Department of Health and Human Resources.
(c) Any amount deducted and withheld under subsection (a) of this section shall for all purposes be treated as if it were paid to the individual as unemployment compensation and paid by the individual to the Department of Health and Human Resources in satisfaction of the individual's uncollected overissuance.
(d) For purposes of this section, the term "unemployment compensation" means any compensation payable under this chapter, including amounts payable by the commissioner pursuant to an agreement under any federal law providing for compensation, assistance or allowances with respect to unemployment.
(e) This section applies only if appropriate arrangements have been made for reimbursement by the Department of Health and Human Resources for the administrative costs incurred by the commissioner under this section which are attributable to uncollected overissuance being enforced by the state or Department of Health and Human Resources.
(f) The term "uncollected overissuance" means, for purposes of this section, obligations which are being enforced pursuant to a plan described in Section 13(c)(1) of the Food Stamp Act of 1977, as codified in 7 U.S.C. 2022(c)(1).
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 21A. Unemployment Compensation › Article 6A. Extended Benefits Program › §21A-6A-2. Effect of State Law Provisions Relating to Regular Benefits on Claims For, and Payment Of, Extended Benefits

Except when the result would be inconsistent with the other provisions of this article, as provided in the regulations of the commissioner, the provisions of this chapter which apply to claims for, or the payment of, regular benefits shall apply to claims for, and the payment of, extended benefits.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 21A. Unemployment Compensation › Article 6A. Extended Benefits Program › §21A-6A-3. Eligibility Requirements for Extended Benefits

An individual shall be eligible to receive extended benefits with respect to any week of unemployment in his eligibility period only if the commissioner finds that with respect to such week:
(1) He is an "exhaustee" as defined in subdivision ten, section one of this article,
(2) He has satisfied the eligibility requirements of this chapter for the receipt of regular benefits which are applicable to individuals claiming extended benefits, including not being subject to a disqualification for the receipt of benefits.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 21A. Unemployment Compensation › Article 6A. Extended Benefits Program › §21A-6A-4. Weekly Extended Benefit Amount

The weekly extended benefit amount payable to an individual for a week of total unemployment in his eligibility period shall be an amount equal to the weekly benefit amount payable to him during his applicable benefit year: Provided, That for any week during a period in which federal payments to states under section 204 of the Federal-State Extended Unemployment Compensation Act of 1970 are reduced under an order issued under section 252 of the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985, the weekly extended benefit amount payable to an individual for a week of total unemployment in his eligibility period shall be reduced by a percentage equivalent to the percentage of the reduction in the federal payment. Such reduced weekly extended benefit amount, if not a full dollar amount, shall be rounded to the nearest lower full dollar amount.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 21A. Unemployment Compensation › Article 6A. Extended Benefits Program › §21A-6A-5. Total Extended Benefit Amount

The total extended benefit amount payable to an eligible individual with respect to his or her applicable benefit year shall be the least of the following amounts:
(1) Fifty percent of the total amount of regular benefits which were payable to him or her under this chapter in his or her applicable benefit year;
(2) Thirteen times his or her weekly benefit amount which was payable to him or her under this chapter for a week of total unemployment in the applicable benefit year: Provided, That an individual filing for extended benefits through the interstate benefit payment plan and residing in a state where an extended benefit period is not in effect shall be limited to payment for only the first two weeks of such extended benefits: Provided, however, That during any fiscal year in which federal payments to states under section 204 of the Federal-State Extended Unemployment Compensation Act of 1970 are reduced under an order issued under section 252 of the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985, the total extended benefit amount payable to an individual with respect to his or her applicable benefit year shall be reduced by an amount equal to the aggregate of the reductions under section four, article six-a of this chapter in the weekly amounts paid to the individual.
(3)(A) For weeks beginning in a high unemployment period, subdivision (1) of this section shall be applied by substituting "eighty percent" for "fifty percent" and subdivision (2) of this section shall be applied by substituting "twenty" for "thirteen."
(B) For the purposes of this article, the term "high unemployment period" means any period during which the provisions of subdivision (3), section one of this article would result in a "state >on' indicator" if subdivision (3), section one of this article were applied by substituting "eight percent" for "six and one-half percent."
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 21A. Unemployment Compensation › Article 6A. Extended Benefits Program › §21A-6A-6. Beginning and Termination of Extended Benefit Period

(1) Whenever an extended benefit period is to become effective in this state, or in all states, as a result of a state or a national "on" indicator, or an extended benefit period is to be terminated in this state as a result of a state "off" indicator or state and national "off" indicators, the commissioner shall make an appropriate public announcement.
(2) Computations required by the provisions of subdivision (5), section one of this article shall be made by the commissioner, in accordance with regulations prescribed by the United States Secretary of Labor.
(3) Whenever, during a period when emergency unemployment compensation benefits are being paid under the provisions of the Emergency Unemployment Compensation Act of 1991, as amended, or under any subsequent extension or reenactment thereof, the state "on" indicator as defined in subdivisions (2) or (3) of section one of this article triggers on a period of extended benefits, the Governor of this state may elect to not implement the state statutory provision and continue the payment of benefits under the Emergency Unemployment Compensation Act of 1991, as amended, to those individuals who have exhausted their entitlement to regular unemployment compensation under state law.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 21A. Unemployment Compensation › Article 6B. Short Time Compensation Program › §21A-6B-1. Definitions:

As used in this article, unless the context requires a different meaning:
"Affected unit" means a specific plant, department, shift, or other definable unit of an employing unit that has at least two employees to which an approved short-time compensation plan applies.
"Commissioner" means the Workforce West Virginia Commissioner, formerly known as the Bureau of Employment Programs Commissioner, as defined in 21A-1A-12 of this code.
"Exhaustee" has the same meaning as defined in 21A-6A-1 of this code.
"Health and retirement benefits" means employer-provided health benefits and retirement benefits under a defined benefit pension plan as defined in 26 U.S.C. 414(j) or contributions under a defined contribution plan as defined in 26 U.S.C. 414(i) that are incidents of employment in addition to the cash remuneration earned.
"Program" means the short-time compensation program established pursuant to this article.
"Short-time compensation" means the unemployment benefits payable to employees in an affected unit under an approved short-time compensation plan, as distinguished from the unemployment benefits otherwise payable under the unemployment benefits provisions of this chapter.
"Work sharing plan" or "plan" means a plan submitted by an employer to the commissioner for approval to participate in the program.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 21A. Unemployment Compensation › Article 6B. Short Time Compensation Program › §21A-6B-3. Approval and Disapproval of Plan

The commissioner shall approve or disapprove a work sharing plan in writing within 10 business days of its receipt and promptly communicate the decision to the employer. A decision disapproving the plan shall clearly identify the reasons for the disapproval. If a plan is disapproved, the employer may submit a different work sharing plan for approval.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 21A. Unemployment Compensation › Article 6B. Short Time Compensation Program › §21A-6B-4. Effective Date of Plan, Revocation of Plan, and Modification of Plan

(a) A work sharing plan shall be effective on the date that is mutually agreed upon by the employer and the commissioner, which shall be specified in the notice of approval to the employer. The plan shall expire on the date specified in the notice of approval, which shall be either the date at the end of the 12th full calendar month after its effective date or an earlier date mutually agreed upon by the employer and the commissioner. However, if a work sharing plan is revoked by the commissioner under subsection (b) of this section, the plan shall terminate on the date specified in commissioners written order of revocation. An employer may terminate a plan at any time upon written notice to the commissioner. Upon receipt of such notice from the employer, the commissioner shall promptly notify each member of the affected unit of the termination date. An employer may submit a new application to participate in another plan at any time after the expiration or termination date.
(b) The commissioner may revoke approval of a work sharing plan for good cause at any time, including upon the request of any of the affected units employees. The revocation order shall be in writing and shall specify the reasons for the revocation and the date the revocation is effective. The commissioner may periodically review the operation of each employers plan to assure that no good cause exists for revocation of the approval of the plan. Good cause shall include failure to comply with the assurances given in the plan, unreasonable revision of productivity standards for the affected unit, conduct or occurrences tending to defeat the intent and effective operation of the plan, and violation of any criteria on which approval of the plan was based.
(c) An employer may request a modification of an approved plan by filing a written request to the commissioner. The request shall identify the specific provisions proposed to be modified and provide an explanation of why the proposed modification is appropriate for the plan. The commissioner shall approve or disapprove the proposed modification in writing within 10 working days and promptly communicate the decision to the employer. An employer is not required to request approval of a plan modification from the commissioner if the change is not substantial, but the employer shall report every change to the plan to the commissioner promptly and in writing.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 21A. Unemployment Compensation › Article 6B. Short Time Compensation Program › §21A-6B-5. Eligibility for Short-Time Compensation

(a) An employee is eligible to receive short-time compensation under a work sharing plan with respect to any week only if the employee is monetarily eligible for unemployment benefits, not otherwise disqualified for unemployment benefits, and:
(1) During the week, the employee is employed as a member of an affected unit under an approved work sharing plan that was approved prior to that week, and the plan is in effect with respect to the week for which short-time compensation is claimed; and
(2) Notwithstanding any other provisions of this title relating to availability for work and actively seeking work, the employee is available for the employees usual hours of work with the short-time compensation employer, which may include, for purposes of this section, participating in training, including employer-sponsored training or training funded under the federal Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act, Pub. L. No. 113-128, 128 Stat. 1425 (2014) to enhance job skills that is approved by the commissioner.
(b) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, an employee covered by a work sharing plan is deemed unemployed in any week during the duration of that plan if the employees remuneration as an employee in an affected unit is reduced based on a reduction of the employees usual weekly hours of work under an approved work sharing plan.
(c) The short-term compensation program shall not serve as a subsidy of seasonal employment during the off-season, nor as a subsidy of temporary part-time or intermittent employment.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 21A. Unemployment Compensation › Article 6B. Short Time Compensation Program › §21A-6B-6. Benefits

(a) The short-time compensation weekly benefit amount shall be the product of the regular weekly unemployment compensation amount for a week of total unemployment multiplied by the percentage of reduction in the individuals usual weekly hours of work.
(b) An individual may be eligible for short-time compensation or unemployment benefits, as appropriate:
Provided
, That no individual shall be eligible for combined benefits in any benefit year in an amount more than the maximum entitlement established for regular unemployment benefits:
Provided, however
, That no individual shall be paid short-time compensation benefits for more than 26 weeks under a plan.
(c) Provisions applicable to unemployment benefits claimants shall apply to short-time compensation claimants to the extent that they are not inconsistent with the programs provisions. An individual who files an initial claim for short-time compensation benefits shall receive a monetary determination.
(d) An employee who is not provided any work during a week by the short-time compensation employer, or any other employer, and who is otherwise eligible for unemployment benefits shall be eligible for the amount of regular unemployment compensation to which he or she would otherwise be eligible.
(e) An employee who is not provided any work by the short-time compensation employer during a week, but who works for another employer and is otherwise eligible, may be paid unemployment benefits for that week subject to the disqualifying income and other provisions applicable to claims for regular unemployment benefits.
(f) An employee who has received all of the short-time compensation or combined unemployment benefits and short-time compensation available in a benefit year shall be considered an exhaustee for purposes of extended benefits and, if otherwise eligible under those provisions, shall be eligible to receive extended benefits.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 21A. Unemployment Compensation › Article 7. Claim Procedure › §21A-7-4. Investigation by Deputy; Notice and Hearing Before Deputy; Referral of Labor Dispute Claims for Hearing and Determination by Appeal Tribunal; Initial Determination of Other Claims by Deputy; Notice of Findings and Decision

(a) A deputy shall promptly investigate all claims.
(b) Upon the filing of any claim for benefits, notice thereof shall promptly be given by the commissioner or his designee to the employer concerned, in writing. The employer shall have a period of four calendar days from the receipt of such notice within which to furnish to the deputy or his local office initial information respecting the claim and the facts and circumstances pertaining to the claimant's unemployment. If, within said four-day period, any party shall request a hearing before the deputy, such hearing shall be held, upon notice to all parties by the commissioner or his designee, either by delivery in person or by mail, within five calendar days of receipt of such request. Such hearing shall be informal in nature, but shall afford the parties reasonable opportunity to present, in person, information relevant to the eligibility and disqualification of the claimant.
(c) If it appears from the deputy's investigation and from all of the information before him that a claim relates to a labor dispute or to a disqualification under subdivision (4), section three, article six of this chapter, the claim shall be transferred to the board for full hearing and initial determination by an appeal tribunal.
(d) If it appears from the deputy's investigation, and from all of the information before him that a claim does not relate to a labor dispute or to a disqualification under subdivision (4), section three, article six of this chapter, the deputy shall determine whether or not such claim is valid, and, if valid, shall determine:
(1) The week with respect to which benefits will commence;
(2) The amount of benefit;
(3) The maximum duration of benefits.
(e) After any finding or determination by a deputy, the deputy shall promptly notify the claimant and the employer of his findings and decision.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 21A. Unemployment Compensation › Article 7. Claim Procedure › §21A-7-7. Appeal Tribunals

The board shall determine the manner of hearing cases transferred or appealed from a decision of a deputy. All cases relating to labor disputes or to disqualification under subdivision (4), section three, article six of this chapter, and transferred to an appeal tribunal for initial determination, shall be heard by an appeal tribunal composed either of three administrative law judges assigned by the board, or the board itself, as the board may direct in particular cases or in particular areas. All other appeals from the decision of a deputy shall be heard by an appeal tribunal composed, as the board may direct in particular cases or in particular areas, of a single administrative law judge; a tribunal of three administrative law judges assigned by the board; a member of the board; or the board itself.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 21A. Unemployment Compensation › Article 7. Claim Procedure › §21A-7-7a. Hearings and Determinations by Appeal Tribunal in Labor Dispute Cases

Upon transfer to the board of a case relating to a labor dispute or to a disqualification under subdivision four, section three, article six of this chapter, for hearing and initial determination by an appeal tribunal, the parties shall be entitled to a full and complete hearing and opportunity to present evidence before an appeal tribunal as provided in section seven of this article. Within eight days after the transfer or referral of such a case to the board, the board shall fix the time and place for hearing such case, and notify the claimant, last employer, and the commissioner, ten days in advance of the date set for hearing. All such cases shall be heard and determined as expeditiously as possible and shall be given priority over all other cases. Upon consideration of all evidence the appeal tribunal shall make a decision with respect to all questions fairly raised by the record, within fourteen days after the date of the hearing, and shall notify the claimant, last employer, and the commissioner of its findings and decisions.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 21A. Unemployment Compensation › Article 7. Claim Procedure › §21A-7-8. Appeal From Deputy's Decision

A claimant, last employer or other interested party, may file an appeal from the decision of the deputy within eight calendar days after notice of the decision has been delivered or mailed to the claimant and last employer as provided in section four of this article. The period within which an appeal from the decision of the deputy may be filed shall be stated in such notice. The decision of the deputy shall be final and benefits shall be paid or denied in accordance therewith unless an appeal is filed within such time.
Upon appeal from the determination of a deputy, an individual shall be entitled to a fair hearing and reasonable opportunity to be heard before an appeal tribunal as provided in section seven of this article.
Within eight days after receipt by the board of notice of appeal from the decision of a deputy, the board shall fix the time and place for hearing such appeal, and notify the claimant, last employer, and the commissioner, ten days in advance of the date set for hearing.
Upon consideration of all evidence the appeal tribunal shall make a decision within twenty-one days after the date of the hearing and shall notify the claimant, last employer, and the commissioner of its findings and decision.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 21A. Unemployment Compensation › Article 7. Claim Procedure › §21A-7-9. Appeal From Appeal Tribunal's Decision; Finality of Decision

A claimant, last employer, or other interested party may file an appeal to the board from the decision of an appeal tribunal within eight calendar days after notice of the decision has been delivered or mailed to the claimant and last employer. The commissioner shall be deemed an interested party. The decision of the appeal tribunal shall be final unless an appeal is filed within such time.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 21A. Unemployment Compensation › Article 7. Claim Procedure › §21A-7-10. Review by Board

The board may, on its own motion, after notice to the claimant, last employer, and the commissioner, eight days in advance of the date set for hearing, affirm, modify, or reverse and set aside a decision of an appeal tribunal. Any appeal from a decision of an appeal tribunal allowing benefits in a case relating to a labor dispute or to a disqualification under subdivision four, section three, article six of this chapter, shall be heard as expeditiously as possible and given priority over all other cases and shall be decided by the board within ten days after the hearing before the board.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 21A. Unemployment Compensation › Article 7. Claim Procedure › §21A-7-11. Benefits Pending Appeal

(a) Benefits found payable by decision of a deputy, appeal tribunal, the board or court shall be immediately paid up to the week in which a subsequent appellate body renders a decision, by order, finding that benefits were not or are not payable.
(b) If, at any appeal stage, benefits are found to be payable which were found before the appeal stage to be not payable, the commissioner shall immediately reinstate the payment benefits. (c) If the final decision in any case determines that a claimant was not lawfully entitled to benefits paid to him or her pursuant to a prior decision, the amount of benefits paid are considered overpaid.
(1) The commissioner shall recover such amount by civil action or in any manner provided in this code for the collection of past-due payment and shall withhold, in whole or in part, as determined by the commissioner, any future benefits payable to the individual and credit the amount against the overpayment until it is repaid in full.
(2) The commissioner may not bill an employer under section three-a, article five of this chapter for overpaid amounts of benefits paid to a claimant. In any instance where the commissioner has billed an employer, the employer has paid the billed amount and the amount is determined under this section to be an overpayment, the commissioner shall reimburse the employer for the amount of the overpayment paid by the employer from the Unemployment Compensation Trust Fund, if allowed by federal law, and if not from the Administrative Fund: Provided, That no employer shall be entitled to any payment under this subdivision unless such employer has filed all requested adequate separation information within the required time frame.
(d) If the final decision in any case determines that the claimant was not lawfully entitled to the benefits paid to him or her pursuant to a prior order any benefits paid pursuant to the prior order, are not chargeable to the employer's account.
(e) Whenever the commissioner finds that a claimant has received back pay at his or her customary wage rate from his or her employer the employee is liable to repay the benefits, if any, paid to the individual for the time he or she was unemployed.
(f) In any case in which, under this section, an employee is liable to repay benefits to the commissioner, the amount is collectible by civil action in the name of the commissioner.
(g) Whenever an employer subject to this chapter is required to make a payment of back pay to an individual who has received unemployment compensation benefits during the same period covered by the back pay award, the employer shall withhold an amount equal to the unemployment compensation benefits and shall repay the amount withheld to the Unemployment Compensation Trust Fund. If an employer fails to comply with this section, the commissioner may recover from the employer the amount of unemployment compensation benefits which should have been withheld by a civil action.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 21A. Unemployment Compensation › Article 7. Claim Procedure › §21A-7-13. Board to Establish Regulations for Procedure

The board shall establish, and may from time to time modify and amend, rules and regulations for:
(1) The conduct and determination of benefit cases appealed to it, or to an appeal tribunal;
(2) The form of all papers and records thereof;
(3) The time, place, and manner of hearings;
(4) Determining the rights of the parties; and the rules need not conform to the common-law or statutory rules of evidence and procedure and may provide for the determination of questions of fact according to the predominance of the evidence.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 21A. Unemployment Compensation › Article 7. Claim Procedure › §21A-7-17. Finality of Board's Decision -- Judicial Review

The decision of the board shall be final and benefits shall be paid or denied in accordance therewith, unless a claimant, last employer, or other interested party appeals to the circuit court of Kanawha county within thirty days after mailing of notification of the board's decision: Provided, That, in cases relating to a disqualification under subdivision (4) of section three of article six the decision of the board shall be final and benefits shall be paid or denied in accordance therewith, unless a claimant, last employer, or other interested party appeals to the circuit court of Kanawha county within twenty days after mailing of notification of the board's decision.
Parties to the proceedings before the board shall be made defendants in any such appeal; and the commissioner shall be a necessary party to such judicial review.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 21A. Unemployment Compensation › Article 7. Claim Procedure › §21A-7-23. Trial; Preference on Calendar

Except as limited by section twenty-one of this article, a decision of the board taken to the circuit court of Kanawha county for judicial review shall be tried as any other civil action: Provided, That such actions shall have preference on the calendar of the court over all other civil actions, except cases arising under the workers' compensation law.
2023 West Virginia Code › Chapter 21A. Unemployment Compensation › Article 7. Claim Procedure › §21A-7-25. Service of Process

Service in such action shall be upon the chairman of the board or such person as he may designate, and service upon him shall be treated as completed service upon all parties to the original dispute. With such service upon the board there shall be included a copy of the petition for review and as many additional copies as there are defendants, including the commissioner. The chairman of the board or such person as he may designate shall immediately upon receipt of service forward a copy of such service, including a copy of the petition for review, by registered mail to each defendant, including the commissioner.