Facts
The case concerns a man, R., born on 8 September 1934, who worked as a technical buyer for the company S. AG. On 3 February 1997, the company was declared bankrupt. Four days later, the bankruptcy administration informed the employees of the termination of their employment contracts, with immediate effect for R. as of 31 May 1997. R. began receiving unemployment benefits from 10 February 1997. After receiving confirmation from the unemployment insurance office (AdU-Arbeitslosenkasse) regarding the payment of benefits, R. requested a postponement of the start of the two-year period for compensation, which would have allowed him to benefit from an exceptional compensation period and an extension of the benefit period. The request was rejected by the unemployment insurance office and then by the cantonal social insurance court of Solothurn.
Considerations
The Federal Social Insurance Court examined the decision of the cantonal social insurance court of Solothurn and considered that Article 29, paragraph 1, of the Federal Act on Unemployment Insurance (UIA) provides that unemployment benefits may be paid even if there are doubts about the realization of wage claims or benefits against the former employer. The Court estimated that the start of the compensation period must be set at the time when all the conditions for granting benefits are met, including the condition of professional harm attributable.
The Court also considered that Article 9 of the UIA provides that the compensation period begins to run from the first day on which all the conditions for granting benefits are met. The Court estimated that the postponement of the start of the compensation period requested by R. is not justified, as the…