The study estimates that “full implementation of Illinois’s work-share program could save as many as 124,000 jobs, boost worker income by $1.3 billion, save businesses up to $1.2 billion in workforce turnover, and reduce Illinois’s unemployment-insurance costs by as much as $1.1 billion in 2020.”

The study cited the economic performance of Germany during the early days of the Great Recession in 2008-2009. Germany “has a robust national work-share program,” and saw 83 percent less growth in unemployment than the United States did, “resulting in an estimated 432,000 jobs saved.”

In the United States at the time, 17 states had work-share programs in place, with the “utilization rate,” meaning the percentage of all unemployment claims being minimized by work-share, being 5.6 percent in Minnesota and reaching a high of 16 percent in Rhode Island. The study estimated that at Minnesota’s participation rate Illinois would save 44,000 jobs, put $457 million in workers’ pockets, and save the state $380 million with the federal contributions from the CARES Act and $228 million after 2020. At the Rhode Island participation rate, meanwhile, the state would preserve almost 125,000 jobs, put $1.3 billion in workers’ pockets, and save $1 billion under the CARES Act and $647 million going forward after this year.

Illinois businesses would benefit from reduced turnover costs, with estimates running between $433 million under the Minnesota model and $1.2 billion under the Rhode Island model.

The study noted “that work-share programs have enjoyed broad support in both the business community and the labor movement, with both the Illinois Manufacturers Association and the Illinois AFL-CIO supporting enactment of state work-share legislation in 2014.”

“Fully 91 percent of employers who have participated in these programs have said they would do so again because they protect against the lost productivity and high turnover costs that accompany mass layoffs,” said study co-author and UIUC Professor Dr. Robert Bruno, director of the Project for Middle Class Renewal. “Work-share enables employers to manage short-term downturns without sacrificing their ability to quickly and efficiently scale up operations during a recovery. To minimize the economic damage from COVID-19, the key for Illinois is to implement its program in a way that maximizes utilization by businesses and workers.”

The study suggests the program seems almost tailor made to the coronavirus pandemic, stating: “Work-share programs allow employers to temporarily reduce the hours of their workers during recessions as an alternative to layoffs, enabling them to retain skilled workers until economic conditions improve. In the firms that participate in work-share programs, workers keep their jobs instead of being laid off and receive prorated unemployment insurance benefits to supplement the lost earnings from their reduced hours. Importantly, they also maintain their health and retirement benefits.

“Unlike previous economic shocks, the COVID-19 recession is an outcome of reasonable efforts to protect public health and save lives,” it adds. “By implementing Illinois’s work-share program and taking advantage of the federal government’s commitment to support these programs through the end of the year, policymakers can take a tangible step to withstand the current economic downturn. Effectively promoting the program as an alternative to mass layoffs, however, requires partnerships between the state of Illinois, business groups, the labor movement, and economic-development agencies. A fully implemented work-share program would improve the ability of Illinois employers to retain skilled workers, boost incomes, and save jobs while reducing unemployment-insurance costs borne by taxpayers.”