Tom's Journal

This makes no sense, Joel. All state job services are required under Wagner-Peyser(this is Federal law, not state, since 1933) to provide services to all lawful job seekers (US citizens, nationals, and legal aliens of legal age to work) whether they are eligible for unemployment compensation or not, and no one in a state job service can tell you instantly whether or not you qualify for UI; even if they think you don't based on what you say and they see on the wage scrape (lacks sufficient qualifying wages, quit the job voluntarily not with good cause attributable to the employer, fired for misconduct, spent the last 18 months in prison, have never worked in the US or Canada or for the Feds or the military, only work history is self-employment, temporarily disabled and doctor will not release for work, etc etc; they are supposed (by law) to take your application for unemployment, and have you register for work. Indeed, in most states, they simply have you do it all online on an office computer, and they won't hazard a guess as to your eligiblity, since that's up to a certifying officer/adjudicator, and the people in the office can get in trouble for making a guess. They send the notice of claim to your former employer or employers, who have 10 days to respond. You file a continued claim to request payment the next week, and weekly or biweekly thereafter. Some time 10 to 42 days after you initially file, depending on season, caseloads, and whether it's a combined wage claim with another state, territory, or Canada, you get a letter saying you are, or not, eligible. But long before that you get a letter requiring you to show up at a workshop on your rights and obligations under unemployment law. When you get the determination letter, it either says you are eligible, and they pay retroactive benefits for eligible weeks you filed on time, or you get a "not eligible" letter, with rights of appeal. And from the first day you file, your SSN is in as a claimant, and you will be tracked in WRIS for the next 3 years, looking for wages in any state or territory under your SSN. And the determination letter is terribly important, and why even if they think you aren't likely to qualify they are supposed to take your application-- because you will need it for applications for other services if you don't promptly find employment-- welfare, food stamps, housing and fuel assistance, medical assistance, etc AND most private non-profit social service agencies will all want the letter stating whether you do qualify (and for how much) or not, in determining eligibility for their programs. And whether or not you are eligible for anything, they are supposed to help you find a job-- register you for work, review your resume, give you job leads, offer you workshops on interviewing, internet job search, etc. No matter what state it is. (Or Guam, American Samoa, US Virgin Islands, US Marianas, Puerto Rico) That is the law.