Section 12-5-81 - Filing of claims(a) A new claim may be filed by any individual who has become totally, part-totally, or partially unemployed. The new claim shall be filed in person, by mail, by telephone, or by using other alternative claims filing procedures as instructed or authorized by the department and in the manner prescribed by the department.(b) The effective date of a claim for benefits shall be the first day of the week in which the claim is filed, except as otherwise provided in this section. The department may apply an earlier effective date if it can be shown to the satisfaction of the department that the individual's delay in filing is excusable for good cause, including but not limited to a reasonable misunderstanding by the individual, misinformation from the department, unavailability of acceptable methods of claims filing provided by the department, or for transitional claims which are effective the day after the prior benefit year ends.(c) For partially unemployed individuals, a new claim may be taken within twenty-eight days from the week ending date of the first week of partial unemployment for which the claim is filed, provided, an individual shall not be required to file a claim earlier than two weeks from the date wages are paid for the claim period.(d) The individual shall present, upon request, identification issued by a governmental agency which displays a photograph of the individual's face, the individual's signature, and the individual's social security account number, unless this requirement is waived by the department. If this identification is not available to the individual, the individual shall secure identification or submit to such reasonable identification procedures as the department may require, such as a notarized document attesting to the identity of the individual. If an individual fails or refuses to provide identification required in this subsection, the department may refuse to take action upon the individual's application, and unless proper identification is provided within two weeks, a determination to deny from the effective date of the initial claim shall be issued.(e) Continued claim certifications for total or part-total unemployment benefits shall be filed as follows: (1) An individual may file a continued claim certification for the purpose of satisfying the waiting period requirement, or claiming benefits for a compensable week by certifying that: (A) The individual was unemployed during the week for which the claim is filed;(B) The individual has earned no wages except as stated;(C) The individual was able to work and available for work;(D) The individual has not refused a job referral or offer of work; and(E) The individual shall provide such other relevant information as the department may require.(2) An individual shall file a continued claim certification in person, by mail, by telephone or by using other alternative claim filing procedures as instructed or authorized by the department and in the manner prescribed by the department.(3) The individual shall file continued claim certifications weekly or bi-weekly in accordance with paragraph (2). When deemed necessary by the department, the individual shall file continued claim certifications at such other intervals as the department shall require.(4) The continued claim certification shall be filed in the manner prescribed by the department not later than seven calendar days following the last day of the week, or the last day of the two-week period in the case of bi-weekly filing intervals, for which benefits or waiting week credit is claimed. For continued claims filed by mail, the postmark date of the envelope in which the claim was mailed shall determine the date of filing. For continued claim certifications filed by telephone, the date that the telephonic transaction was completed by the individual and accepted by the remote claims taking system shall determine the date of filing. The department may extend the time allowed for filing a continued claim certification if the failure to file the claim certification within the time allowed is excused for good cause as determined by the department. Good cause includes but is not limited to: (A) Incapacitation of the individual; or(B) Failure to understand filing requirements.(5) If an individual fails to file continued claim certifications for benefits for two or more consecutive weeks in the manner prescribed by paragraph (4), the individual shall be required to file a reopened claim in the same manner prescribed by subsections (a) and (b) for new claims.(6) The department, upon showing of convenience or necessity, may transfer the individual to the office of the unemployment insurance division which has jurisdiction over the area in which the individual resides.(7) Individuals who temporarily leave the area in which they are currently filing for benefits and registered for work may file for not more than two consecutive weeks of benefits by telephone or by reporting in person to an unemployment insurance claims office serving the new area. The continued claims for benefits shall comply with the requirements in this subsection. If the individual remains in the new area for a longer period of time, an initial interstate claim should be filed. However, the requirements of this subsection may not apply if the individual is instructed or authorized to do otherwise by the department or the unemployment insurance claims office in the new area. Failure to comply with this subsection, including the failure to provide relevant information as required, shall be considered a failure to file claims in accordance with section 383-29(a)(1), Hawaii Revised Statutes. Benefits shall be denied for the week in which the individual's failure to file occurs and continuing until the conditions of this subsection are met.
(f) Additional claims for total and part-total benefits shall be filed as follows: (1) After a series of claims for consecutive weeks of unemployment is broken by the employment of the individual, the individual, upon subsequent unemployment during the remainder of the benefit year previously established, shall file an additional claim in the manner prescribed by section 12-5-81(a) and (b) in order to begin a new series of claims, provided the unemployment is not partial unemployment.(2) To file an additional claim, an individual shall: (A) On the date the additional claim is filed, be unemployed and have separated from work;(B) Be registered for work as prescribed by section 12-5-31;(C) Complete and file with the department an additional claim form unless otherwise instructed or authorized by the department in accordance with section 12-5-81(a) and (b); and(D) Furnish such information as the department may require.(g) Continued claim certifications for partial benefits shall be filed as follows: (1) An individual may file a continued claim certification for partial benefits in person, by mail, by telephone or by using other alternative claim filing procedures as instructed or authorized by the department and in the manner prescribed by the department with respect to each week of the individual's partial unemployment. A continued claim certification shall be filed in the same manner as prescribed in section 12-5-81(e)(1) not later than twenty-eight days from the end of the week for which the individual claims benefits; provided an individual shall not be required to file a continued claim certification earlier than two weeks from the date wages are paid for a claim period.(2) If, after a week of partial unemployment, four or fewer consecutive weeks of total unemployment follow the week of partial unemployment, the weeks of total unemployment may be deemed weeks of partial unemployment. However, if total unemployment extends beyond four consecutive weeks, the individual shall be deemed totally unemployed.(3) Notwithstanding paragraph (2), the department may extend partial unemployment beyond four consecutive weeks of total unemployment under conditions including but not limited to: (A) The individual is retained in an employer-employee relationship; and(B) The individual is under obligation to reserve services for the employer; and(C) The individual has a definite or reasonably imminent return to work date.(h) The initial claims of individuals who are affected by a mass separation may be taken as a group by the department. The term "mass separation" means a separation (permanently or for an indefinite period or for an expected duration of seven or more days) of fifty or more workers, employed in a single establishment, at or about the same time and for the same reason whether or not there is a severance of the employment relationship.(i) An individual shall report in person as requested or provide information by mail, by telephone or as instructed by the department, to an office of the unemployment insurance division, to an itinerant point, or to a designated agency as instructed at such days and hours as required by the department for any of the following purposes: (1) Attending an eligibility benefit rights interview, unless the individual has waived, in writing and with the permission of the department, attendance at the interview;(2) Providing information at a periodic eligibility interview;(3) Providing information to determine or redetermine that individual's eligibility for benefit under chapter 383, Hawaii Revised Statutes;(4) Providing information to determine or redetermine that individual's liability for repayment of any overpaid benefits; or(5) Attending a worker profiling orientation or assessment in accordance with section 383-29(a)(6), Hawaii Revised Statutes. Failure to comply with this subsection shall be considered a failure to file claims in accordance with section 383-29(a)(1), Hawaii Revised Statutes. Unless the individual's failure to comply is excused for good cause pursuant to subsection (j), benefits shall be denied beginning with the week in which the individual failed to comply as instructed and continuing until the conditions of this subsection are met.
(j) An individual's failure to report as scheduled or to provide information to the department for any of the purposes in subsection (i) may be excused for good cause. A Good cause@ means: (1) Illness or disability of the individual;(2) Keeping an appointment for a job interview;(3) Attending a funeral of a family member; and(4) Any other reason which would prevent a reasonable person from complying as directed. For the purpose of this subsection, "failure to comply" means a failure to report during the regular office hours of the unemployment insurance office on the scheduled day or a failure to provide information by a date specified by the department, except that with respect to an individual scheduled to report at an itinerant point or at a designated agency, failure to report means a failure to report during the hours as instructed on the scheduled day.(k) In using telephone, or other alternative or remote claims taking procedures to file a claim as prescribed by section 383-29(a)(1), Hawaii Revised Statutes, an individual may be required to establish a personal identification number (PIN) as instructed by the department. The PIN is confidential and the individual shall not disclose that PIN to anyone else unless authorized to do so by the department. Each individual shall be responsible for all claims filed under the individual's social security number and PIN.[Eff. 6/26/81; am 12/31/84; am 3/10/86; am 10/12/00; am 11/6/06] (Auth: HRS § 383-92) (Imp: HRS §§ 383-29(a), 383-32)