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ATTORNEYS FOR APPELLANT Steven F. Pockrass Robert F. Seidler Indianapolis, Indiana

ATTORNEYS FOR APPELLEE, REVIEW BOARD OF THE INDIANA DEPARTMENT OF WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT Gregory F. Zoeller Attorney General of Indiana Francis H. Barrow Deputy Attorney General Indianapolis, Indiana

ATTORNEYS FOR APPELLEE, T.A., ET AL. Nora L. Macey Barry A. Macey Robert A. Hicks Indianapolis, Indiana

FILED
Jan 19 2012, 9:48 am
of the supreme court, court of appeals and tax court

In the

Indiana Supreme Court
No. 93S02-1109-EX-565 CHRYSLER GROUP, LLC,

CLERK

Appellant (Respondent below), v. REVIEW BOARD OF THE INDIANA DEPARTMENT OF WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT AND T.A., ET AL., Appellee (Petitioners below).

Appeal from the Review Board of the Indiana Department of Workforce Development, No. (09-28378) 10-R-00621 Steven F. Bier, Chairperson; George H. Baker, Member; Lawrence A. Dailey, Member On Petition to Transfer from the Indiana Court of Appeals, No. 93A02-1004-EX-441

January 19, 2012 Shepard, Chief Justice.

As the U.S. economy collapsed in 2008, Chrysler offered a buyout program to employees in Kokomo, Indiana. Those employees then applied for unemployment benefits under Indiana's Unemployment Compensation Act and their claims were initially denied. The Review Board of

the Indiana Department of Workforce Development ultimately awarded benefits under a narrow provision of the Act. While this provision has now been repealed, its application is a matter of real consequence to these parties. We affirm the Board.

Facts and Procedural History In 2008, Chrysler Group, LLC--like the rest of the country--faced almost unprecedented economic challenges.1 It closed manufacturing plants in multiple states and offered senior employees in those states the opportunity to relocate to plants still operating elsewhere-- including Chrysler's plant in Kokomo. (Appellant's App. at 4.) Chrysler laid off some of its employees in Kokomo due to a decrease in work volume, and these workers received unemployment benefits, along with supplemental unemployment benefit pay ("sub-pay") and continuing health care coverage from Chrysler. (Appellant's App. at 4

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