What the value? How many installments? Understand the rules of unemployment insurance

One of the most well-known assistance benefits among Brazilians, the Unemployment Insurance is a right of workers with a work card after being dismissed without just cause. It serves to provide temporary relief to the newly laid-off employee’s budget.

It is quite common, however, that doubts arise about how it is granted. O CNN Brasil Business details how it works, who is entitled and how to apply for the benefit:

What is Unemployment Insurance?

Created in 1986, Unemployment Insurance is a benefit granted to registered workers, when they are fired without just cause, and to three other specific groups. Its main purpose is to provide financial assistance for a few months to the policyholder who has involuntarily lost income.

The right is paid temporarily with funds from the Worker’s Support Fund (FAT), through Caixa Econômica Federal, between 3 and 5 monthly installments ranging between R$ 1,100 and 1,911.84, depending on the average salary and length of service provided.

Who is entitled to unemployment insurance?

Initially, workers with a formal contract who have been dismissed without just cause are eligible to receive unemployment insurance. In addition to the reason for dismissal, the applicant cannot have any other type of income, be favored by another social program, nor receive any continued social security benefit, such as retirement or pension.

Regarding working time, to apply for insurance for the first time, the applicant must have received 12 salaries in the last 18 months. In the second request, the amount of salaries drops to 9 in 12 months. From the third onwards, it is necessary to prove a lack of 6 salaries received in the months prior to the professional dismissal.

Also included are domestic employees, registered as an Individual Contributor to Social Security; artisanal fishermen in closed season (period when sport or commercial fishing activities are prohibited or controlled); and people rescued from forced labor or a condition analogous to slavery.

How to apply for unemployment insurance?

Previously, the Unemployment Insurance application process was made only at the Superintendencies of Labor and Employment (SRTE), located in all states, by appointment by calling 158. Now, the application can also be made online, on the official Gov portal .br, or in the Digital Workbook application, available for users of Android and iOS systems.

If you are going to apply for Unemployment Insurance through the website, go to the page and click on the “Start” option, highlighted in green on the right side of the screen. For those who are already registered on the federal government’s portal, just enter your login data and enter. In the case of new accounts, the system will ask for some identification confirmations, such as name, CPF and professional history.

After login, the platform will display the various services available, including Unemployment Insurance. Click on the link and then click on “Application for Unemployment Insurance”. On the next page, enter the application number, expressed at the top of the resignation form, given by the employer on leave, and follow the instructions to complete the application.

The mobile application request is very similar to the one on the website. After downloading the app and logging in, click “Benefits” at the bottom of the screen and then “Apply” in the Unemployment Insurance box. Then enter the application number and follow the instructions to process the order.

What is the application deadline?

Under the original rule, the request for unemployment insurance must be made between 7 and 120 days immediately after the date of formal dismissal or the prohibition of action, in the case of fishermen. For domestic workers or rescued workers, the maximum period is 90 days.

However, in August 2020, the Ministry of Economy published resolution 873 which suspended the maximum period in the event of the pandemic. Still in force, the rule establishes that policyholders, dismissed after March 2020, may apply for assistance at any time, until the state of public health emergency and calamity lasts.

What is the amount of unemployment insurance?

Payment of Unemployment Insurance follows a table of salary ranges that takes into account two mathematical accounts. In the first one, which serves to define the average salary, it is necessary to add the last three salaries and divide the result by three. After that, to reach the amount that will actually be paid, the worker must multiply the result by 0.8. To know:

Thus, if a person received R$1,300, R$1,400 and R$1,500 in the last three months, respectively, the amount of each installment of financial assistance will be R$1,120. See the account: 1,300+1,400+1,500= 4,200/3= 1,400×0,8= R$ 1,120.

For someone who is in the second bracket, with an average salary of BRL 2,000, for example, the portion will be BRL 1,506.03, according to the following account: 2,000-1,686.79= 313.21×0.5= ​​156 .60+1349.43= BRL 1,506.03. The value of the third range does not change.

How many installments of Unemployment Insurance will I receive?

The amount of installments to be paid also follows a rule that changes according to the number of requests and working time. See the table below:

When do I get the first installment?

According to the Ministry of Economy, the estimated time for analysis and payment of the first installment of aid is between 31 and 60 days. Other salaries are paid every 30 days, as long as the insured continues to comply with the necessary requirements. The consultation is available through the same request channels.

Do interns receive unemployment insurance?

Labor lawyer Daniela Zapata, a professor at the Newton Paiva University Center, says that the end of the internship contract does not provide for the payment of unemployment insurance, as it is not a formal employment relationship.

At the same time, according to her, the internship is not an impediment for a worker, dismissed from your registered work, ask for the benefit.

Are those who resigned entitled to unemployment insurance?

The benefit is intended to provide financial security to workers dismissed by the company’s unilateral decision. Therefore, dismissal at the employee’s request does not entitle you to unemployment insurance, explains Daniela.

Despite this, the expert emphasizes that, in case of serious misconduct by the employer, there is the possibility of filing an indirect termination, a labor action provided for in article 483 of the CLT (Consolidation of Labor Laws) to point out flaws in the procedures of the company. Among the irregular conducts are: non-compliance with the employment contract, moral harassment, risk to the employee’s physical integrity or health, accumulation of function, among others.

“The judge, upholding the labor action filed by the employee, decrees the indirect termination of the contract and determines that the employer pays all severance payments due in the dismissal without just cause”, he points out. In this case, in addition to insurance, the employee also receives all other rights, such as unblocking and a fine from the FGTS (Guarantee Fund for Length of Service).

I’m an employee and I have MEI, can I get unemployment insurance?

Having an active Individual Microentrepreneur (MEI) registry does not prevent the worker from receiving unemployment insurance. If the request is denied, it is possible to appeal the decision, through an administrative appeal, guides the lawyer. This feature can be registered on the federal government platform or on the Worker’s Digital Card application.