LOC News
Oregon Employment Department Informed of SB 916 Rules Problem
Citing guidance issued as far back as 1979, the U.S. Department of Labor (USDOL) has informed state employment departments that exempting striking workers from job search requirements would likely violate federal law.
SB 916, passed by the Oregon Legislature in 2025, allows striking workers to collect unemployment benefits. While the bill as written does not violate federal law, administrative rules to implement the law proposed by the Oregon Employment Department (OED) would have exempted those workers from the requirement to be actively seeking work.
According to USDOL, states that do not enforce long standing federal job search requirements would be out of compliance and would risk losing federal grants and employers would not be eligible for certain tax credits.
SB 916 took effect on January 1 of this year, but it is unclear at this time how the OED intends to respond with regard to their administrative rules. During the 2025 session, multiple employer interests testified to the potential for a conflict between SB 916 and federal laws.
Please monitor the weekly LOC Bulletin for further updates.
Contact: Scott Winkels, Lobbyist – swinkels@orcities.org
Last Updated 1/9/26