Reclaiming Unemployment Benefits Due to Subsequently Paid Sickness Benefits under the IPA

Facts

A., born in 1971, was employed as a line manager and forklift driver at B. AG since 1988. Due to health-related absences, the employer terminated the employment relationship as of September 30, 2012. A. registered with the Unemployment Insurance on January 28, 2013 and applied for unemployment benefits. He stated that he wanted to work at the level of 50% of a full-time position. The UIA Unemployment Insurance Fund paid unemployment benefits from January 28, 2013 based on a reduced insured income. By decision of March 18, 2014, the Unemployment Insurance Fund reclaimed the excess unemployment benefits paid from January to April 2013 in the amount of CHF 4,765.10, as it had become aware on September 12, 2013 that A. had received full sickness benefits from the Schweizerische Mobiliar Versicherungsgesellschaft AG during the same period.

Considerations

The Federal Supreme Court holds that benefits from a collective sickness benefit insurance under the IPA are considered as replacement of earnings and must therefore be deducted from the unemployment benefits according to Art. 28 para. 2 UIA in order to avoid overcompensation. The reclaiming of the excess unemployment benefits can thus be based on Art. 95 para. 1 UIA in conjunction with Art. 25 para. 1 GSSLA, as the Unemployment Insurance Fund had no knowledge of the subsequently awarded sickness benefits at the time of payment of the daily allowances.

The question of whether a…