(a) Except as provided in paragraph (b) of this section, an employee may receive extended unemployment or extended sickness benefits under this part if he or she:

(1) Has exhausted normal unemployment or normal sickness benefits (as the case may be) under subpart A of this part;

(2) Has completed 10 years of railroad service, as set forth in § 336.13 of this part; and

(3) Continues to have days of unemployment or days of sickness, as the case may be.

(b) An employee is not eligible for extended sickness benefits if he or she has voluntarily retired or has attained age 65. In the case of claims for unemployment benefits, an employee is not eligible for extended unemployment benefits if he or she has voluntarily left work without good cause or has voluntarily retired.

For the purposes of this part, the Board considers that an employee has exhausted his or her current rights to normal benefits for days of unemployment if:

(a) The employee received unemployment benefits for 130 days of unemployment in the benefit year; or

(b) The employee received unemployment benefits in the benefit year equal to the amount of his or her base year compensation; or

(c) At the end of a normal benefit year during which the employee was qualified for benefits, he or she received less than the maximum unemployment benefits for the benefit year and he or she is not qualified for benefits in the next succeeding benefit year.

For the purposes of this part, the Board considers that an employee has exhausted his or her current rights to normal benefits for days of sickness if:

(a) The employee received sickness benefits for 130 days of sickness in the benefit year; or

(b) The employee received sickness benefits in the benefit year equal to the amount of his or her base year compensation; or

(c) At the end of the normal benefit year during which the employee was qualified for benefits, he or she received less than the maximum sickness benefits for the benefit year and he or she is not qualified for benefits in the next succeeding benefit year.

(a) Eligibility. For the purposes of this part, an employee is not eligible for extended unemployment or sickness benefits if he or she does not have at least 10 years of railroad service. An employee who has 120 service months, as defined in part 210 of this chapter, whether or not consecutive, is considered to have 10 years of railroad service.

(b) Initial determination. The Board will determine whether an employee has 10 years of railroad service on the basis of reports filed by employers pursuant to part 209 of this chapter. The number of years of service shown in the Board's records will be accepted as correct for the purposes of this part, unless the employee claims credit for more service than that shown in the Board's records and such additional service is verified, subject to part 211 of this chapter.

(c) Effective date. An employee acquires ten years of railroad service as of the first day with respect to which creditable compensation is attributable in his 120th month of service.

(a) Defined. An extended benefit period consists of seven consecutive 14-day registration periods.

(b) Beginning date. In the case of unemployment benefits, an extended benefit period begins with the first day of unemployment after the day on which the employee exhausts his or her rights to normal unemployment benefits. In the case of sickness benefits, the beginning date is the first day of sickness after the employee exhausts normal sickness benefits. Such first day of unemployment or first day of sickness must be within the same benefit year with respect to which the employee exhausted normal unemployment or normal sickness benefits, as the case may be. However, no extended benefit period may begin on any day of unemployment or sickness prior to the date on which the employee acquired 10 years of railroad service.

(c) Ending date. An employee's extended benefit period ends on the 97th day after it began. If an employee attains age 65 during an extended sickness benefit period, such extended benefit period will terminate on the day next preceding the date on which the employee attains age 65, except that it may continue for the purpose of paying benefits for his or her days of unemployment, if any, during such extended period. If an extended sickness benefit period terminates because the employee has attained age 65, and if at that point the employee has rights to normal sickness benefits, the employee will be paid normal sickness benefits if he or she is otherwise entitled to payment thereof.

(d) Maximum number of compensable days. Extended benefits may be paid for a maximum of 65 days of unemployment (or 65 days of sickness, as the case may be) within an employee's extended benefit period.

An employee who has 10 or more years of railroad service who exhausts his or her rights to normal unemployment or normal sickness benefits and who wishes to claim extended unemployment or extended sickness benefits may do so by claiming benefits on the forms provided by the Board pursuant to parts 325 or 335 of this chapter. The claim forms provided for this purpose are the same as those provided for claiming normal benefits. No special application for extended benefits is required, and no waiting period applies to the payment of extended benefits.

Upon determining that an employee is eligible for a period of extended unemployment or sickness benefits, the Board will notify the employee of the beginning and ending dates of such extended benefit period.