WILMINGTON, DE – The Delaware Department of Labor (DOL) announced the revised Taxable Wage Base, Assessment Rate Tables, Cap Earned Rate for Calendar Year 2023, and the New Employer Rates for 2023, effective January 1, 2023. The taxable wage base will be $10,500 in 2023.

With the unanimous support of the Unemployment Insurance Advisory Council, DOL Secretary Karryl Hubbard issued Emergency Rule 21 to implement new tax rates for 2023 which are estimated to reduce the Unemployment Insurance tax obligation for Delaware employers by an estimated $50 million DOL was able to take these actions on December 31, 2022 due in part to the $240 million investment in Corona Virus Response Act Funds that were placed in the UI Trust Fund in 2021.

House Bill 49, signed by Governor Carney on January 26, 2023 codifies the changes enacted by Secretary Hubbard’s 21st Emergency Rule issued on December 22, 2022.

• For calendar 2023, the average employer assessment rate, the average industry assessment rate, and the average construction industry assessment rate will each be 1%.
• All other employers will be assigned a basic assessment rate according to the following table in place for 2023:

2023 – Special One Year Schedule of Rates

If an employer’s benefit wage ratio exceeds the highest percentage in the table above, their basic assessment rate shall be 5.40 %

Employers who are determined for calendar year 2023 to have the delinquency rate of assessment, shall continue to be assigned the delinquency rate of 6.5%.

The Delaware Department of Labor connects people to jobs, resources, monetary benefits, workplace protections and labor market information to promote financial independence, workplace justice and a strong economy. The department is made up of five divisions: Unemployment Insurance, Industrial Affairs, Employment & Training, Vocational Rehabilitation and Paid Family Leave.

The Division of Industrial Affairs (DIA) at the Department of Labor (DOL) is currently conducting its Annual Prevailing Wage Survey for state-funded construction projects.

On January 4, 2023, the Department mailed over 4000 survey forms to contractors. The completed survey forms must be postmarked or returned to DIA for the data to be used in the calculation of the Delaware Prevailing Wage Rates no later than February 8, 2023.

DIA plans to publish its annual “Prevailing Wage Determination”  on or before March 15, 2023, which is valid for a period of one year.

The following are copies of survey instructions and forms:

• 2023 Survey Letter

Contact Department of Labor about the Annual Prevailing Wage Survey at 302-761-8200.

WILMINGTON, DE – The Delaware Department of Labor is teaming up with statewide partners to present a series of One-Stop Resource Expos in May to highlight the Delaware Workforce Innovation & Opportunity Act (WIOA).

Dozens of partner organizations will be on hand at booths to speak with people about employment, education and other support programs.

Participating agencies will have an expo table to share key flyers, materials and inf0rmation. Those attending will be able to find information about areas of interest including Jobseeker Services, Employer Services, Skills Training, Re-entry & Justice-involved Services, Certification & Apprenticeship Programs, Small Business Development Assistance and youth & adult programs.

“The Expos are an important way to show the interdependent nature of DOL’s employment programming and the community and business partners needed to connect community members to services,” said DOL Secretary Karryl Hubbard. “DOL is the employment agency, and we want to partner with organizations that are in the business of changing people’s work lives for the better.”

The purpose of the Expos is to provide critical information to Delawareans about how best to access workforce development programming across the state. The events, which are tied to several employment programs offered by DOL’s Division of Employment & Training, will span three different days, at three separate locations across Delaware.

The event dates and locations are as follows:

• Kent County: Monday, May 9 at Modern Maturity Center in, Dover
• Sussex County: Thursday, May 12 at Cheer Center in Georgetown
• New Castle County: Tuesday, May 24 at Delaware Park in Wilmington

Representatives from dozens of career services organizations like Delaware Public Libraries, Department of Health & Social Services, Goodwill of Delaware & Delaware County, Tech Impact, Delaware Tech and Delaware State University will be on hand.

The Expos will be open from 9:30am to 12:30pm and are open to the public others interested in learning more about programs that are designed to help job seekers. No registration is required.

For more information, contact Hope Ellsworth at 302-236-6805

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

WILMINGTON, DE – The Delaware Department of Labor (DOL) is announcing the new Employer Unemployment Insurance and new Construction employer tax rates for 2022, effective January 1, 2022.

• New Employer and new Construction employer rates are maintained at 2020 levels
• Establish 2022 merit rate at lower of 2020, 2021, or 2022 tax rate, except for delinquency rate (conditions apply)
• Authorization for DOL to issue credits to employers and reduce the delinquency tax rate to correct administrative errors or address fraudulent claims charged to employers (conditions apply, including being current on filing all quarterly reports)
• Establish 2022 taxable wage base at $14,500 (down from $16,500 in 2021)

COVID related and fraudulent claims, as well as delays in receiving and processing employers’ 2020 and 2021 tax payments impacted employer tax rates in 2021.

The Secretary, with the unanimous support of the Unemployment Insurance Advisory Council, took these actions to prevent the issues from persisting into 2022. Lowering the taxable wage base to $14,500 is estimated to save employers more than $11 million in 2022.

These actions were made possible by the Governor and General Assembly’s investment of nearly $250 million of the State’s Coronavirus Relief Funds to the Unemployment Insurance trust fund.

“The COVID-19 pandemic has been an unprecedented challenge for Delaware employers,” said DOL Secretary Karryl Hubbard. “These actions reaffirm our commitment to maintain UI taxes at the lowest levels possible, allowing employers to reinvest that money in their workers and infrastructure in order to restore their companies and the Delaware economy to pre-pandemic levels.”

The Delaware Department of Labor connects people to jobs, resources, monetary benefits, workplace protections, and labor market information to promote financial independence, workplace justice, and a strong economy. The department is made up of four main divisions: Unemployment Insurance, Employment & Training, Industrial Affairs, and Vocational Rehabilitation.

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Media Contact:
Alejandro Bodipo-Memba
DOL Communications
302-761-8002