Lay-off
A lay-off means that the employer temporarily suspends work and the payment of wages. However, the employment relationship remains in force. An employee may be laid off either for a fixed period or until further notice. A lay-off may be implemented as a full-time lay-off or by reducing working hours. You can apply for the earnings-related allowance during a lay-off.
Please note that in order to receive the earnings-related allowance during a lay-off, you must register as a jobseeker with the employment authority and meet the general conditions for eligibility to earnings-related allowance.
Your employment is considered full-time if the working hours agreed in your employment contract exceed 80 % of the maximum working hours of a full-time employee.
If you are laid off completely, earnings-related allowance is paid in full for the lay-off days.
If you are laid off partially, earnings-related allowance is paid either in full or as an adjusted allowance. This depends on whether the lay-off is implemented by reducing your weekly working hours or your daily working hours.
A temporary lay-off from full-time work with reduced working weeks means that the number of working days per week is reduced. Your working week will then consist of lay-off days and full working days.
Earnings-related allowance is paid in full for lay-off days. You are not entitled to the earnings-related allowance for working days. Wages earned on working days do not reduce the amount of the allowance paid for lay-off days.
Working time assessment
Working time is assessed on a calendar-week basis. If your working time exceeds 80 % of the maximum working hours of a full-time employee, you are not entitled to earnings-related allowance for that week.
You must apply for earnings-related allowance in line with your pay period, either in four-week periods or calendar months. Due to the working time assessment, the application must always be completed up to Sunday, even if the monthly application period ends in the middle of a week.
Maximum number of payable days per week
Earnings-related allowance can be paid for a maximum of five days per week. Each working day reduces the number of payable days by one. Working days performed during the weekend also reduce the number of payable days.
Attention! If the application period includes both full working days and shortened working days, the allowance is paid as an adjusted allowance. This means that wages earned during the application period reduce the amount of the allowance. Adjusted allowance is paid for both lay-off days and working days.
Working time is assessed on a calendar-week basis. Wages from calendar weeks for which no allowance is paid due to working time are not taken into account when adjusting the allowance.
A temporary lay-off with reduced daily working hours means that the length of your working day is reduced during the lay-off.
Wages earned during the lay-off reduce the amount of earnings-related allowance for the application period in which the wages are paid. The application period is either four weeks or a calendar month, in accordance with your pay period.
Working time assessment
Working time is assessed per application period, based on the number of hours paid during that period.
If the number of paid hours exceeds 80 % of the maximum working hours of a full-time employee, you are not entitled to earnings-related allowance for that application period.
Your employment is considered part-time if the working hours agreed in your employment contract are no more than 80 % of the maximum working hours of a full-time employee.
For employees laid off from part-time work, earnings-related allowance is paid according to the same principles as an adjusted allowance. Apply for the benefit in application periods of either four weeks or a calendar month, depending on your pay period.
If you are fully laid off, earnings-related allowance is paid in full, provided that there are no pay dates within the application period. Please note that wages earned before the lay-off may also affect the amount of the allowance if the pay date falls within the application period.
If you work during the lay-off or if the application period includes other paid periods, report your working hours in the application. Wages are adjusted for the application period during which they are paid. Read more about how wages affect earnings-related allowance here
| Example | You are fully laid off for the period 1 February–28 February. Your January wages (1–31 January) are paid on 15 February, so they fall within the February application period and affect the amount of the allowance. As a result, you receive an adjusted allowance for the period 1 February–28 February. |
| The lay-off ends on 28 February, but you keep your job search active, as you may be entitled to the allowance even without a lay-off when working part-time. | |
| You return to work on 1 March and work part-time in accordance with your employment contract. You apply for the allowance for the period 1–31 March. You receive the full allowance, as there are no pay dates within the application period. Your March wages (1–31 March) are paid on 15 April, so they do not affect the allowance paid for the period 1–31 March. |
A person working part-time should therefore keep their job search active and apply for the allowance also after the lay-off.
Working time asssessment
Working time is assessed on a payment basis, by adjustment periods, i.e. in monthly or four-week application periods. If the number of paid hours in the application period exceeds 80 % of the maximum working hours of a full-time employee, you are not entitled to earnings-related allowance for that period.
The working time assessment also takes into account hours paid for paid annual leave and sick leave.
The effect of annual leave, holiday pay and holiday bonus on the earnings-related allowance depends on whether the leave and the related payments were earned from full-time or part-time work.
Annual leave during a lay-off from full-time work
You are not entitled to earnings-related allowance for periods of annual leave earned from full-time work. However, holiday pay and holiday bonus do not reduce the amount of the allowance, even if they are paid during the lay-off period.
You are also not entitled to the allowance for other paid periods based on full-time work, such as public holidays or additional leave days.
All paid periods must be reported in the application.
Annual leave during a lay-off from part-time work
Holiday pay and holiday bonus earned from part-time work are treated as income that reduces earnings-related allowance for the application period in which they are paid.
You can apply for adjusted earnings-related allowance also for the period of annual leave, if your job search is valid with the employment authority.
Paid leave periods must be reported in the application in the same way as working days. Other paid periods, such as sick leave, public holidays and additional leave days, must also be reported.
Read more about part-time work and the earnings-related allowance
You may be entitled to the earnings-related allowance also in situations where work and pay are interrupted for a reason comparable to a temporary lay-off.
This refers to a situation where work is prevented due to a reason beyond the control of both the employee and the employer, for example due to a fire at the workplace.
Situations comparable to a temporary lay-off occur, for example, among employees of student restaurants when the workplace is closed during school holidays.
In such situations, the earnings-related allowance is paid and processed in the same way as in other temporary lay-off situations.