§ 96-16. Seasonal pursuits.
§96‑16. Seasonal pursuits.
(a) A seasonal pursuitis one which, because of seasonal conditions making it impracticable orimpossible to do otherwise, customarily carries on production operations onlywithin a regularly recurring active period or periods of less than an aggregateof 36 weeks in a calendar year. No pursuit shall be deemed seasonal unless anduntil so found by the Commission: Provided, however, that from March 27, 1953,any successor under G.S. 96‑8(5)b to a seasonal pursuit shall be deemed seasonalunless such successor shall within 120 days after the acquisition requestcancellation of the determination of status of such seasonal pursuit; providedfurther that this provision shall not be applicable to pending cases norretroactive in effect.
(b) Upon applicationtherefor by a pursuit, the Commission shall determine or redetermine whethersuch pursuit is seasonal and, if seasonal, the active period or periodsthereof. The Commission may, on its own motion, redetermine the active periodor periods of a seasonal pursuit. An application for a seasonal determinationmust be made on forms prescribed by the Commission and must be made at least 20days prior to the beginning date of the period of production operations forwhich a determination is requested.
(c) Whenever theCommission has determined or redetermined a pursuit to be seasonal, suchpursuit shall be notified immediately, and such notice shall contain thebeginning and ending dates of the pursuit's active period or periods. Suchpursuits shall display notices of its seasonal determination conspicuously onits premises in a sufficient number of places to be available for inspection byits workers. Such notices shall be furnished by the Commission.
(d) A seasonaldetermination shall become effective unless an interested party files anapplication for review within 10 days after the beginning date of the firstperiod of production operations to which it applies. Such an application forreview shall be deemed to be an application for a determination of status, asprovided in G.S. 96‑4, subsections (m) through (q), of this Chapter, andshall be heard and determined in accordance with the provisions thereof.
(e) All wages paid to aseasonal worker during his base period shall be used in determining his weeklybenefit amount; provided however, that all weekly benefit amounts so determinedshall be rounded to the nearest lower full dollar amount (if not a full dollar amount).
(f) (1)A seasonal worker shall be eligible to receive benefits based on seasonal wagesonly for a week of unemployment which occurs, or the greater part of whichoccurs within the active period or periods of the seasonal pursuit or pursuitsin which he earned base period wages.
(2) A seasonal workershall be eligible to receive benefits based on nonseasonal wages for any weekof unemployment which occurs during any active period or periods of theseasonal pursuit in which he has earned base period wages provided he hasexhausted benefits based on seasonal wages. Such worker shall also be eligibleto receive benefits based on nonseasonal wages for any week of unemploymentwhich occurs during the inactive period or periods of the seasonal pursuit inwhich he earned base period wages irrespective as to whether he has exhaustedbenefits based on seasonal wages.
(3) The maximum amountof benefits which a seasonal worker shall be eligible to receive based onseasonal wages shall be an amount, adjusted to the nearest multiple of onedollar ($1.00), determined by multiplying the maximum benefits payable in hisbenefit year, as provided in G.S. 96‑12(d) of this Chapter, by thepercentage obtained by dividing the seasonal wages in his base period by all ofhis base period wages.
(4) The maximum amountof benefits which a seasonal worker shall be eligible to receive based onnonseasonal wages shall be an amount, adjusted to the nearest multiple of onedollar ($1.00), determined by multiplying the maximum benefits payable in hisbenefit year, as provided in G.S. 96‑12(d) of this Chapter, by thepercentage obtained by dividing the nonseasonal wages in his base period by allof his base period wages.
(5) In no case shall aseasonal worker be eligible to receive a total amount of benefits in a benefityear in excess of the maximum benefits payable for such benefit year, asprovided in G.S. 96‑12(d) of this Chapter.
(g) (1) Allbenefits paid to a seasonal worker based on seasonal wages shall be charged,as prescribed in G.S. 96‑9(c)(2) of this Chapter, against the account ofhis base period employer or employers who paid him such seasonal wages, and forthe purpose of this paragraph such seasonal wages shall be deemed to constituteall of his base period wages.
(2) All benefits paid toa seasonal worker based on nonseasonal wages shall be charged, as prescribed inG.S. 96‑9(c)(2) of this Chapter, against the account of his base periodemployer or employers who paid him such nonseasonal wages, and for the purposeof this paragraph such nonseasonal wages shall be deemed to constitute all ofhis base period wages.
(h) The benefitspayable to any otherwise eligible individual shall be calculated in accordancewith this section for any benefit year which is established on or after thebeginning date of a seasonal determination applying to a pursuit by which suchindividual was employed during the base period applicable to such benefit year,as if such determination had been effective in such base period.
(i) Nothing in thissection shall be construed to limit the right of any individual whose claim forbenefits is determined in accordance herewith to appeal from such determinationas provided in G.S. 96‑15 of this Chapter.
(j) As used in thissection:
(1) "Pursuit"means an employer or branch of an employer.
(2) "Branch of anemployer" means a part of an employer's activities which is carried on oris capable of being carried on as a separate enterprise.
(3) "Productionoperations" mean all the activities of a pursuit which are primarilyrelated to the production of its characteristic goods or services.
(4) "Active periodor periods" of a seasonal pursuit means the longest regularly recurringperiod or periods within which production operations of the pursuit arecustomarily carried on.
(5) "Seasonalwages" mean the wages earned in a seasonal pursuit within its activeperiod or periods. The Commission may prescribe by regulation the manner inwhich seasonal wages shall be reported.
(6) "Seasonalworker" means a worker at least twenty‑five percent (25%) of whosebase period wages are seasonal wages.
(7) "Interestedparty" means any individual affected by a seasonal determination.
(8) "Inactiveperiod or periods" of a seasonal pursuit means that part of a calendaryear which is not included in the active period or periods of such pursuit.
(9) "Nonseasonalwages" mean the wages earned in a seasonal pursuit within the inactiveperiod or periods of such pursuit, or wages earned at any time in a nonseasonalpursuit.
(10) "Wages"mean remuneration for employment. (1939, c. 28; 1941, c. 108,s. 7; 1943, c. 377, s. 14 1/2; 1945, c. 522, s. 33; 1953, c. 401, ss. 20, 21;1957, c. 1059, s. 14; 1959, c. 362, s. 18; 1983, c. 585, s. 19.)