By Ms. Khan of Newton, petition (accompanied by bill, House, No. 1804) of Kay Khan and others relative to unemployment benefits in severance and retirement agreements.  Labor and Workforce Development.

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts

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PETITION OF:

Kay Khan

Timothy J. Toomey, Jr.

Barbara A. L'Italien

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In the Year Two Thousand and Seven.

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An Act relative to unemployment benefits.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court assembled, and by the authority of the same, as follows:

SECTION 1. Subsection (e) of section twenty-five of chapter one hundred fifty-one A, of the General Laws, as appearing in the 2004 Official Edition, is hereby amended by adding at the end of said subsection the following new paragraph:

An individual who is offered by his or her employer, in consideration of the individual’s agreement to separate from his or her employment with the employer, an inducement, in a form including but not limited to severance or retirement payments, shall not be disqualified pursuant to the provisions of this subsection from receiving benefits provided that in any such instance the individual has not been informed by the employer, in writing, that the individual’s employment with the employer would either continue or discontinue should the individual elect not to accept the employer’s offer.