Title 8 . Labor and Workforce Development

Chapter 85 . State Employment Training Program

Section 410. Suitable work

8 AAC 85.410. Suitable work

(a) The director will determine that only work in a claimant's customary occupation is suitable work for the claimant under AS 23.20.385 (b) for the first 13 consecutive weeks of the claimant's unemployment, if the claimant has reasonably good prospects of returning to work in that occupation. A claimant is considered to have reasonably good prospects of returning to work in a seasonal occupation if the claimant is likely to return to work in the next work season. Work that is outside the claimant's customary occupation and for which the claimant has the training and experience is considered suitable work if the claimant does not have reasonably good prospects to return to the claimant's customary occupation or has been unemployed for at least 13 consecutive weeks.

(b) To determine if the wages, hours, or other conditions of work offered to a claimant are substantially less favorable to him than those prevailing for similar work in the locality, the following standards apply:

(1) similar work is work which is similar in the operations performed, the skill, ability and knowledge required, and the responsibilities involved. A judgment of similar work will not be based on job title, hours of work, wages, permanency of the work, unionization, employee benefits, or other conditions of work;

(2) the locality of the work offered to a claimant is the area surrounding the offered work and is comprised of those establishments which normally use the same labor supply for work similar to the offered work;

(3) the prevailing wages, hours, or other conditions of work are those under which the greatest number of workers are employed in similar work in the locality; however, if the greatest number of workers employed at the same rate is not at least one-third of the total employed, then the prevailing rate will be expressed as the weighted average of the total number of rates;

(4) a condition of work offered to a claimant is not substantially less favorable than that prevailing for similar work in the locality if the difference between the condition of the offered work and the prevailing condition is minor or technical, or would have no adverse effect on the claimant. Wages for work offered to a claimant are substantially less favorable than those prevailing if the offered rate is less than 90 percent of the prevailing rate.

History: Eff. 11/7/80, Register 76; am 3/27/82, Register 81; am 10/11/95, Register 136

Authority: AS 23.20.045

AS 23.20.385