Partial Business Stakeholder Eligible for Unemployment? (in Mass)

[thxforyourhelp]

Hello!

My colleague has recently been laid off and she is a partial stakeholder (has <25% equity) in the company. Are there any restrictions in Massachusetts regarding maximum %-age ownership to make individuals qualified for unemployment benefits? Our business has been complying with unemployment insurance taxes and this individual lost her job through no fault of her own.

I tried to research MA policy and was unable to find anything, so any help would be much appreciated!

I did come across the following clause for Washington State's policy: "Officer cannot get unemployment benefits if they own at least 10 percent of the business or are related to another corporate officer who owns at least 10 percent of the business."

If any such clause exists in MA, or if you can offer any insight, please let me know- Many thanks!

 

[commentator]

Why in the dickens would this person not just file for benefits and let Massachusetts answer this question? Some states have this sort of provision, some do not. It isn't worth the time and trouble to look it up, guess at the correctness of your research, and act accordingly when you will get it straight from them when you file a claim. My bet is that she'll be fine to draw benefits. But that's just an educated guess. It costs nothing to file, it is worth a few minutes of your time, and there is no way that you can or cannot argue with the system however it is set up. Of course she will mention, when she files the claim, that she does own this percentage. That way it's not left for them to discover and later accuse her of fraud if it turns out she's not eligible by MA statute.

 

[swalsh411]

I would hope that if unemployment taxes were paid on her wages then she would be eligible to collect. Why not just apply? As long as you truthfully answer the questions there is nothing to lose.

 

[davew128]

I would hope that if unemployment taxes were paid on her wages then she would be eligible to collect. Why not just apply? As long as you truthfully answer the questions there is nothing to lose.

I agree but I don't recall if employee/shareholder wages were subject to SUTA in Mass. If not, then the person has to hope they have covered wages from somewhere else.