2025-11-12T14:22:43-07:00 2024-12-31 990 2024-01-01 911505747 UNEMPLOYMENT LAW PROJECT UNEM 2064419178 1904 3rd Ave Suite 604 Seattle WA 98101 Joseph Shaeffer President 2064419178 2025-11-12 1 2024 2025-03-06 01:10:19Z John Tirpak 1904 3rd Ave Suite 604 Seattle WA 98101 1061841 0 X www.unemploymentlawproject.org X 1984 WA The Unemployment Law Project is a statewide, not-for-profit law firm that is established to provide advice, education, advocacy, services, and representation to unemployed workers, to defend the rights and benefits of workers and unemployed people, to advise workers, and to further Washington State residents in accessing unemployment benefits. 7 7 24 26 0 0 2163625 959918 42566 30698 27 0 57400 71225 2263618 1061841 0 0 0 0 1290235 953011 0 0 27527 376989 251351 1667224 1204362 596394 -142521 1889660 1079338 516489 408688 1373171 670650 The Unemployment Law Project is a statewide, not-for-profit law firm that is established to provide advice, education, advocacy, services, and representation to unemployed workers, to defend the rights and benefits of workers and unemployed people, to advise workers of their rights, and to help alleviate the burden of Washington State residents experiencing unemployment. 0 0 1116369 30698 The Unemployment Law Project (ULP) provides free legal assistance and information to people who have been denied unemployment benefits. With offices in Seattle and Spokane, Washington, we offer our services to anyone who has or is eligible for a Washington State unemployment claim. Unemployment benefits are a public benefit, in existence since 1935 as part of the Social Security Act, an enacted in Washington State in 1937. Countless studies have demonstrated that unemployment benefits help not only the individual unemployed worker, but also the whole community. Unemployment benefits are paid out to landlords, grocery stores, medical professionals, restaurateurs, etc. The benefits help a worker manage a period of unemployment, staying in their home and continuing to have food and medicine while temporarily without work. Empirical studies have demonstrated that a person who has representation at a benefits hearing is more likely to succeed in winning benefits than someone who is not represented. ----In 2024 ULP represented in 694 hearings and appeals. This includes four cases in Superior Court and the Court of Appeals. ULP provided advice to 508 persons. In April ULP published our report VOICES OF WASHINGTON'S UNEMPLOYED, distilling 100 interviews of UI claimants whose benefits were threatened or who were ordered to repay benefits. The report advocates for broad policy reforms at ESD. Claimants frequently cited under staffing at ESD, the unfriendly appeals process, and the baffling complexity of the system. Key legislators, press, and state and federal policy makers received print copies of the report. A Seattle Times front page story highlighted the report and the destructive impact of the overpayment charges. In July 2024 the new care-giving "good cause" quit rule that ULP advocated for took effect. ULP advocated against some overly narrow rules related to the law by the business community. Fortunately the rules adopted regarding this new quit rule broadly apply to a myriad of family caregivers forced to quit a job due to childcare and other caregiving obstacles. Recently a pro se claimant was denied at her hearing because the judge did not follow the new law. The judge ruled that she quit for personal reasons and was disqualified. ULP wrote the Petition for Review to the Commissioner's Review Office and the benefits were allowed. She had "good cause" to quit due to the inaccessibility of child care for her new shift. Since 2021 ESD has been issuing thousands of overpayment notices regarding pandemic benefits. Advocates have demanded a waiver program. ULP played a key role in challenging enforcement deadlines for claimant submissions. The Department of Labor agreed and notified ESD that their interpretation of the law was incorrect. This opened the path to thousands of COVID overpayment waivers in WA State. ESD has now waived or refunded over $400 million in the state with more waivers pending. In 2024 the Office of Administrative Hearings hired a new Chief Judge. ULP staff met with the new chief judge to discuss problems and other issues with the hearing office. Some of our recommendations have been adopted. NARRATIVE OF SELECTED CASES 1: A man from a Greek immigrant family from Skagit County was separated from his employment because he requested an extension of his leave to take care of his dying father. He wanted to make sure that he was at his father's side when he passed away, which the doctors indicted was imminent. He was the only child and his elderly mother was unable to assist his father as she sustained injuries while trying to provide care. The employer denied the request for an extension of his leave and requested that he return to work the following Monday. The man had exhausted his Paid Family Medical Leave. He was unable to return to his job and the employer terminated him. After his father passed away, two weeks after the job ended, the man filed for unemployment benefits. The Employment Security Department approved his benefits. The employer appealed and ULP represented him at the hearing. The judge approved the claim and there was no overpayment. NARRATIVE OF SELECTED CASES 2:The Spokane office represented a woman who had been discharged from her position at a local store where she was employed as an Assistant Store Manager. She had been working on resetting an aisle as directed by her supervisor. She took products off the shelves and set them on the floor so that she could rearrange the aisle. She was then called up to the front to help the cashier. When she was done with that task, she went back to the aisle to finish her project. The items had all been placed in another container. A customer acknowledged that she had done that and proceeded to call her racial slurs. She told the customer not to speak to her in that manner. The customer called the police. The police escorted the customer out of the store. The employer put her on unpaid suspension pending an investigation. She was not told how long she would be suspended. She applied for emergency funds from DSHS and the DSHS representative told her that their records showed that she was fired by the employer. Benefits were denied by the Employment Security Department. ULP represented her at the hearing. The judge found her testimony to be credible and there was no finding of misconduct. Benefits were allowed. NARRATIVE OF SELECTED CASES 3:We represented a woman who quit her job due to workplace safety. The claimant worked as an Employment Specialist and helped individuals find work. She was harassed by a client of a company that she was trying to help find a job. The client had a history of assault and harassment. The claimant became a victim of it in 2023. The claimant notified her employer and the employer did not initially take steps to assist her. The claimant continued to try to assist the client. She tried to speak with her employer and told them that she felt unsafe.. She tried to speak with the owner of the business and set up a time to resolve the situation.. The owner became agitated the claimant. The client continued to continously harass her with threatening and abusive messages.. The claimant was now in fear of her life. She reached out to her supervisors. To attempt to curb the stalking and abusive behavior, the employer responded by locking down the worksite and filing a police report. The employer offered her the option of working from home and leave options. However, the harassment and threatening behavior continued. The claimant filed a police report and went to court for a Protection Order. At the hearing the claimant got into a verbal altercation with the Protection Order judge. Marshalls were called in and the Protection Order hearing was continued. The claimant feared violence from the client and quit her job to protect her from harm. ESD denied her unemployment benefits. ULP represented her at her unemployment hearing. The judge ruled that quitting her job was necessary to protect the claimant from domestic violence and stalking. Benefits were allowed. 0 0 0 1116369 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 24 1 0 0 0 0 1 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 X 7 7 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 1 1 1 1 1 1 0 0 0 WA X Unemployment Law Project 2064419178 1904 3rd Ave Suite 604 Seattle WA 98101 Juliana C Repp Spokane Attorney 40 0 X 106832 0 0 John Tirpak Executive Director 40 0 X 100986 0 0 Jennifer Murray Vice President 1 0 X 0 0 0 Andrez Munoz Board Member 1 0 X 0 0 0 Jennifer Yogi Board Member 1 0 X 0 0 0 Lillian Kaide Board Member 1 0 X 0 0 0 Jenee Jahn Treasurer 1 0 X 0 0 0 Joseph Shaeffer President 1.5 0 X 0 0 0 Erin Pettigrew Board Member 1 0 X 0 0 0 207818 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 336074 623844 57400 959918 Client Donations 541000 30698 30698 0 0 0 0 0 0 30698 0 0 0 0 0 in-kind professional services 541000 71225 71225 0 0 0 0 0 0 71225 1061841 101923 0 0 100986 55140 33621 12225 617274 617274 0 0 33636 31618 1480 538 130011 123852 4753 1406 71104 67298 2661 1145 75435 75435 11500 11500 9856 9856 35257 33530 1156 571 15112 14205 665 242 84446 79379 3716 1351 12014 11293 528 193 7731 7345 386 1204362 1116369 60466 27527 64271 18864 263089 181007 1144831 515010 16944 16989 347468 0 400525 347468 1889660 1079338 158979 104674 357510 304014 516489 408688 X 313171 170650 1060000 500000 1373171 670650 1889660 1079338 X -142521 0 0 0 0 -560000 X 1 0 0 0 X 1549471 1883168 1927846 2263618 501841 8125944 1549471 1883168 1927846 2263618 501841 8125944 8125944 17 13 19 27 28 104 8126048 0.99999 0.99999 X RESTRICTED RESTRICTED RESTRICTED RESTRICTED RESTRICTED RESTRICTED RESTRICTED RESTRICTED 347468 0 347468 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 347468 Operating Lease Liability, less current portion 304014 304014 Form 990, Part VI, Section B, Line 11b Form 990 is provided to the President of the ULP board for review prior to signing and filing. In the event that the Board President is unavailable, the Treasurer of the Board is responsible for reviewing and signing Form 990 prior to filing. Form 990, Part VI, Section B, Line 12c All members of the ULP Board are required to sign a conflict of interest form. The executive Director reviews any potential conflicts of interest involving board members. Form 990, Part VI, Section C, Line 19 In the event that a copy of ULP's 990 return, conflict of interest policy, or any other governing documents were requested, a digital copy of the documents would be provided to the requester or a printed copy would be mailed if the requester did not have access to a computer. Form 990, Part XI, Line 9 560,000 in Net Assets from the Legal Foundation of Washington were released from restrictions. This should be filed on time. ULP filed an Application for an Automatic Extension of Time to File an Exempt Organization Return that was approved.