OVERVIEW FOR ACADEMICS

MEETINGS AND ACTIVITIES

FACTS ABOUT AKADEMIKERNES A-KASSE

MEMBERS: 195,000 thereof 19.000 student members

ESTABLISHED: 1 July 2013

EMPLOYEES: 170

OFFICES: Copenhagen, Aarhus, Aalborg, Odense and Esbjerg

PRICE: DKK 412 per month. Free Students membership

YOU ARE AN ACADEMIC.

YOU HAVE WORKED HARD TO

GAIN KNOWLEDGE AND TO

DEVELOP INTO A UNIQUE,

WELL-QUALIFIED POTENTIAL

EMPLOYEE. YOU ARE A VALUABLE

RESOURCE WHO WISHES TO BE

USED, AND TO DO YOUR BEST TO

MAKE THIS HAPPEN. OUR

AMBITION IS THEREFORE TO

HELP YOU TO ACHIEVE YOUR

OWN AMBITIONS.

- Michael Valentin, CEO

“1 January 2015

4 About Akademikernes A-kasse

5 The Danish unemployment insurance system in short

6 What does it cost and how much unemployment benefit will you receive?

7 What you need to know as a new graduate

Remember the 14-day requirement

When will you graduate?

Do you have a student job?

11 Close to companies – where the jobs are

12 Focus on your profession

13 Your options if you become unemployed

14 Your contact with the job centre

14 Conditions for receiving unemployment benefit

15 Meetings and activities

17 Courses

18 Job seeking abroad

19 Dictionary

CONTENTS

1 January 2015

As a member of Akademikernes A-kasse you are naturally ensured unemployment benefit for up to 2 years, if you are unemployed. This corresponds to the principle in an insurance company. You receive unemployment benefit irrespective of your personal finances, or how much your spouse/cohabiting partner earns. This is in contrast to cash benefit from the municipality, of which there is no guarantee if you are unemployed.

HELP TO FIND A NEW JOBAkademikernes A-kasse’s main focus is on jobs and our overriding ambition is to get our unemployed members out into the labour mar-ket, so that they can fulfil their ambitions. We will not impose futile activities on you, but give you the freedom to put together your own programme - which might consist of the following:

Workshops - Coaching - Network - Competent feedback

REQUIREMENTSThe minimum requirement for membership is a bachelor’s degree or if you have completed a vocational training course of at least 18 months duration. You can benefit from our free Student membership, which is offered to all students attending university or other higher educational institutions.

To receive unemployment benefit it is a requirement that you: • Have not transferred credits from a foreign education to shorten

a bachelor or master degree in Denmark• Have a work permit in Denmark for 37 hours after you graduate.

ABOUT AKADEMIKERNES A-KASSE

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THE DANISH UNEMPLOYMENT INSURANCE SYSTEM IN SHORT

In Denmark, unemployment insurance is based on voluntary mem-bership of an unemployment insurance fund. Consequently, it is up to each person to take out an insurance against unemployment.

Through the membership of an unemployment insurance fund, you insure yourself against loosing an income, much like you would in-sure yourself against theft, illness, and accidents. However, even though unemployment insurance funds are privately held associa-tions, the legislation circumscribing them is passed by the National Parliament. Consequently this sets them apart from insurance com-panies.

On that note, it is important to distinguish between a trade union and an unemployment insurance fund as they are two different types of associations. A trade union deals with issues concerning the ne-gotiation of wages, contracts, and maternity leave. Or in short, they help you, when you have a job. Unemployment insurance funds assist job seeking members economically during periods of unemployment.

WHAT DOES IT COST, AND HOW MUCH WILL YOU RECEIVE?

Akademikernes A-kasse is Denmark’s cheapest unemployment fund for graduates. It costs DKK 412 per month, and the amount is tax-deductible.

As a new graduate you can receive DKK 14,690 per month in un-employment benefit.

Visit aka.dk to see how your unemployment benefit will increase.

FREE STUDENT MEMBERSHIPAs a student you can get free membership if:• Your course of study qualifies for a state education grant (SU)• You are under 30 (membership is free until age 30. You then au-

tomatically switch to being a paying member)• Your total annual income does not exceed DKK 215,020 (average

DKK 17,918 per month)

If you have been a student member for at least one year before finish-ing your studies, you avoid the exclusion period laid down in the un-employment benefit system, which otherwise means one month with no income if you are unemployed when graduating.

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WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW AS A NEW GRADUATE

As a new graduate, there are certain things you should be aware of as a member of Akademikernes A-kasse. In the following you will find the most important attention points.

REMEMBER THE 14-DAY REQUIREMENTYou must join Akademikernes A-kasse no later than 14 days after you complete your studies. This also applies if you have been a student member - in which case you must re-register as a graduate member. You can begin to receive unemployment benefit one month after you graduate - and if you have been a student member for minimum one year, you can receive unemployment benefit from day one.

In both cases it requires you to register as unemployed on Jobnet.dk and to be available for full-time work.

WHEN WILL YOU GRADUATE?To be registered as a recently graduated member, we must receive your registration no later than 14 days after you complete your stud-ies. The 14-day deadline runs from the day that you no longer comply with the study activity requirements. You fulfil these requirements for as long as you attend classes, take examinations, defend a project or thesis, are waiting for grades, etc. If your last examination took place on 10 May, for example, we must receive your registration by 24 May at the latest.

Find out when your studies are considered to be completed:

1. IF YOUR LAST EXAMINATION IS ORALIf you complete your studies with an oral examination, at which you also receive your last grade, your study activity will end with your last oral examination.

2. IF YOUR LAST EXAMINATION IS WRITTENIf you complete your studies with a written examination, for which you also receive your last grade, your study activity will end when your grade is announced.

3. IF YOUR EDUCATION PROGRAMME ENDS WITH A WRITTEN ASSIGNMENT

Some education programmes are completed with a main assignment or thesis - in which case we will consider your education programme to be completed when the external examiner and your supervisor have signed a pre-approval. This is subject to the condition that all of your other grades have been given.

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4. IF YOUR EDUCATION PROGRAMME ENDS WITH A WRITTEN ASSIGNMENT THAT MUST BE DEFENDED

If you are required to defend your main assignment or thesis, we will not consider your education programme to be completed until the day that you have defended your assignment or thesis. In this case, it will not help to get a pre-approval from the external examiner or your supervisor.

5. THE DAY YOU RECEIVE YOUR EXAMINATION CERTIFICATEThe four situations above describe the earliest date on which we can consider your education programme to be completed. As an alterna-tive, we can use the date on which your examination certificate is issued, if it is issued at the same time as your education programme is completed. If your examination certificate is dated 13 June, for ex-ample, we must receive your application for registration by no later than 27 June. If your college or university sends the examination certificate later than the issue date, however, the 14-day deadline will run from the date on which the college or university sent the examination certificate.

RESIDING AND STAYING IN DENMARK BEFORE AND AFTER YOUR STUDIES To be registered as a new graduate, you must have permanently re-sided and stayed in Denmark both before your studies commenced and at the time that you wish to register.

DO YOU HAVE A STUDENT JOB?If you currently have a job in addition to your studies that you would like to keep after you graduate, it is possible to keep the job and re-ceive supplementary unemployment benefit.

QUARANTINEIf you are thinking of leaving the job, however, as a general rule you will be subject to three weeks’ quarantine. This means that for three weeks you will not be able to receive unemployment benefit. This also applies if you leave a job during the first month after completion of your studies, even if you are not entitled to receive unemployment benefit during that month.

To avoid quarantine, you must therefore have given your notice and left the job before becoming a member of Akademikernes A-kasse - also if you re-register as a new graduate.

If you are in any doubt, you should always contact Akademikernes A-kasse in good time if you are considering leaving your student job.

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At Akademikernes A-kasse we are in close contact with the busi-ness community and know where there are job opportunities for our members. Using our ever-expanding network of companies and pub-lic-sector organisations, our constant endeavour is to find jobs and match them with our unemployed members. This is because gradu-ates create growth, which is the message we take out into every cor-ner of Denmark.

We match unemployed members with jobs within all professions, and you can find these jobs at aka.dk.

WE KNOW WHAT COMPANIES NEED AND HAVE A WIDE-RANGING NETWORK

IN VARIOUS SECTORS

CLOSE TO COMPANIES - WHERE THE JOBS ARE

We are confident that we know the job market for graduates better that anyone else. This is because we are present all over Denmark, where companies are located, and because our members cover 22 academic member organisations, with which we work closely. This ensures that our services are matched to every requirement.

As a member of Akademikernes A-kasse you will be one of many well-educated engineers, lawyers, economists, chief engineers, phy-sicians, dentists, librarians, architects, veterinary surgeons, etc. This opens up many opportunities and scope for feedback across the academic job market.

FOCUS ON YOUR PROFESSION

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Besides workshops and feedback with Akademikernes A-kasse, you can make use of the following:

SUPPLEMENTARY UNEMPLOYMENT BENEFITIf you work on a part-time basis, you can also receive supplementary unemployment benefit.

SELF-EMPLOYED AS SECONDARY EMPLOYMENTYou have the opportunity to be self-employed while also receiving unemployment benefit. Special rules apply, however, so if you are interested, you can read more at aka.dk. You are also welcome to contact us.

JOBS ABROADYou can continue to receive Danish unemployment benefit for up to 3 months while you look for work abroad in another EEA country.

UNPAID WORKWhile you are unemployed you can work on a voluntary, unpaid ba-sis for social and humanitarian organisations, without any deduc-tions being made from your unemployment benefit.

YOUR OPTIONS IF YOU BECOME UNEMPLOYED

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REGISTER AS UNEMPLOYED AT YOUR LOCAL JOB CENTRE You have to register as unemployed on jobnet.dk on the first day you are unemployed. You only have the right to benefits for days you are registered at jobnet.dk.

CHECK YOUR JOB PROPOSALS ONCE A WEEKIt is mandatory to log on to jobnet.dk once a week to check your job proposals.

If you forget you will be deregistered from the job centre and you do not have the right to benefits. You regain the right to benefits from the day you register again as unemployed at jobnet.dk.

REMEMBER TO REGISTER ILLNESS AND VACATION AT JOBNET.DKIt is mandatory to register your vacation at jobnet.dk.

ADDRESSIf you move or change address, you must inform the job centre im-mediately.

YOUR CV AT JOBNET.DK Within three weeks from registering as unemployed you have to cre-ate your CV on jobnet.dk. You must provide details about your educa-tion, previous employment and other qualifications.

YOUR CONTACT WITH THE JOB CENTRE

• You have an updated, active and accessible CV at jobnet.dk. • If you have worked largely as a self-employed, you are entitled to

unemployment benefit when the company has ceased trading or when you have left the business.

• You apply for job that Akademikernes A-kasse, the job centre or another organisation request you to apply for.

• Your job search is realistic and serious meaning that you apply for work in Denmark that you are capable of carrying out with respect to transportation and family circumstances.

You also have to be an active job seeker even if for example you are planning to take maternity leave, early retirement benefit or are about to start new work.

The same applies while you are participating in a mandatory work activity scheme (aktivering) in accordance with a job plan or you have part-time work and receive supplementary unemployment ben-efit. It is not sufficient just to seek more working hours in your cur-rent place of employment.

HOW TO BE AN ACTIVE JOB SEEKER

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We must assess whether you are available in the following situations: • Each time you meet with us and at least every third month. • If the job centre informs us that you for instance have not

fulfilled your obligations to “anden aktør”. • In connection with unemployment after a prolonged period of

illness. • If you leave a job in order to take on another job with fewer hours. • If you have applied for social pension. • If you receive a pension owing to loss of earning capacity. • If you have twice declared yourself sick when requested to attend

mandatory meetings.

STRICTER MOBILITY REQUIREMENTS For all middle-range or highly educated people, there is a stronger obligation to be geographically mobile in respect of job location. This means that you have to apply for jobs, the job centre asks you to apply for, even if the daily transportation exceeds four hours if this is nec-essary to fill in vacancies with qualified individuals. Consideration must, however, be given to family circumstances.

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You choose how often you want to meet with Akademikernes A-kasse, however, every third month as a minimum. If you do not book a meeting within three months, we will send you a reminder.

Every time you meet with Akademikernes A-kasse it is mandatory to fill in ‘Min plan’. You find this at self-service at aka.dk. In ‘Min plan’ you register the jobs you apply for and the meetings in which you participate in order to get closer to a job.

MEETINGS AND ACTIVITIES

You have the opportunity for maintaining unemployment benefit for up to three months while living in another EEA country looking for a job.

You must meet the conditions for receiving unemployment benefit at the time of your departure and you must have been registered as fully unemployed at the job centre for at least four weeks prior to your departure. You apply by filling in a PD U2 application form. Always contact us in advance for more details.

LIVING IN AN EEA COUNTRY – TRANSFER OF MEMBERSHIP It is important that you contact us if you begin to work or move to another country than Denmark since we have to guide you in respect of the regulations for transferring membership. This is important also in relation to early retirement contribution.

JOB SEEKING ABROAD

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English Danish

Enrolment date Indmeldelsestidspunkt(at/in a trade union)

Independent secondary work Selvstændig bibeskæftigelse

Job activation Aktivering

Probationary period Karantæne/Ban prior to start of benefits

Proof/Certificate of Frigørelsesattestfull-time benefits eligibility

Residence or work abroad Ophold eller arbejde i udlandet

Self-caused unemployment Selvforskyldt ledighed The timeline within which Rettidighedthe unemployed person must be offered job activation

Unemployment benefits Dagpenge

Unemployment insurance fund A-kasse

Unpaid work Ulønnet arbejde

DICTIONARY

T 3395 0395akademikernes.dk

Akademikernes A-kasseKøbenhavnPostboks 410Vester Farimagsgade 131504 København V

Akademikernes A-kasseAarhusVærkmestergade 25, 9.8000 Aarhus C

Akademikernes A-kasseOdenseEnglandsgade 255000 Odense C

Akademikernes A-kasseAalborgVestre Havnepromenade1B, 1.9000 Aalborg

Akademikernes A-kasseEsbjergNiels Bohrs Vej 66700 Esbjerg

T 3395 0395aka.dk