WEST virginia legislature
2020 regular session
Introduced
Senate Bill 547
By Senators Trump and Plymale
[Introduced January 20,
2020; referred
to the Committee on the Judiciary]
A BILL to amend and reenact §21-3E-16 of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, relating to employer testing, notice, termination, and forfeiture of unemployment compensation benefits.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
Article 3. The west virginia safer workplace act.
§21-3E-16. Employer testing; notice; termination; forfeiture.
If an employer implements a
drug-free workplace program in accordance with this article, which includes
notice, education and procedural requirements for testing for drugs and alcohol
pursuant to this law, the employer may require the employee to submit to a test
for the presence of drugs or alcohol. If an employee is terminated because
alcohol or a drug or alcohol is found to be present in the
employee’s system at a level proscribed by the employer’s policy, the employee,
may be terminated and forfeits his or her eligibility for unemployment
compensation benefits and if injured at the time of the intoxication, forfeits
indemnity benefits under the Worker Compensation Laws. However, the employer’s
drug-free workplace program must notify all employees that it is a condition of
employment for an employee to refrain from reporting to work or working with
the presence of drugs or alcohol in his or her body and that policy must also
state that if an injured employee refuses to submit to a test for drugs or
alcohol, that employee forfeits eligibility for unemployment compensation
benefits, and if injured, for indemnity benefits under the Worker Compensation
Laws. Employers who do not notify their employees of this condition of
employment waive their right to assert that eligibility for benefits is
entirely forfeited.
Nothing herein may be construed or deemed to affect §23-4-2(a) of this code and the provisions of said section shall be the sole manner in which intoxication may be proven to establish such intoxication as the proximate cause of an injury for purposes of said chapter.
NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to rectify a conflict with Federal Unemployment Compensation and Social Security Administration laws regarding claims determinations and an individual’s “opportunity for a fair hearing” for unemployment compensation claims that are denied.
Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken from a heading or the present law and underscoring indicates new language that would be added.