Shawn

Yes, but few actually have the power to obtain. Social welfare is great, don't get me wrong, but people have to help themselves first.

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The most frightening part of leaving a parent's home, to me, is not knowing where one's own home is.

Hodge

Yes, and lord knows if we all go around thinking we can just quit a job any time we want for whatever pressing reason we have then all hell will break loose!

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Science

silverwriter

I had a job I loved, but I had to quit for health reasons. I also had a job I loathed which, had I not transferred schools, I would have quit anyway.

Either way, between jobs I feel I was entitled to unemployment even though I didn't apply for it.

People shouldn't be punished for quitting a crap job. There are too many abusive bosses and just plain rotten jobs out there for that kind of punishment to exist.

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mammamaia

i heartily disagree!... they're not being 'penalized' by not being given money tax payers have to supply, when they choose to leave a job, unless it's for harassment or something really justifiable... if everyone who wanted to quit for any reason could get unemployment, the system would be bankrupt in a week or less...

here's the actual skinny on the subject:

Quote:

You may quit for good cause attributable to your employer. "Attributable to your employer" means you quit because of problems related to your job. These reasons may include: Unsafe working conditions; A job which is damaging to your health (with medical proof). The job must either cause your illness or make your medical condition worse; A change in working conditions that is harmful to you. For example, you may be asked to work longer hours, take a reduction in pay, or have to do very different job duties. Your employer broke your original contract. For example, your employer did not give you a pay increase that was promised in your contract. You may NOT get unemployment compensation if you quit your job because of a health condition not caused by the job. For example, if you had a heart attack off the job that prevents you from doing your job, you may be unable to get unemployment benefits. Good cause does NOT include quitting because you did not like being criticized by your employer (except where there is an excessive pattern of verbal abuse that a responsible person would find offensive), quitting because you did not get a raise you asked for but had not been promised, or quitting because you lost child care for your children. If you quit without good cause, you may not be able to get other benefits from the state such as food stamps or cash assistance.. In addition, before quitting you must: Talk with your employer about why you want to quit. You must give the employer a chance to work out the problems, unless you can show it would have been useless to have done so. For example, you may have told the employer about the problem many times and the employer did nothing about it; Explore all other alternatives to quitting, such as taking a leave of absence. You must show that quitting was the only reasonable thing to do. You may also quit for certain other reasons and still get benefits. You quit to care for a seriously ill spouse, child or parent who is living with you, as documented by a licensed doctor. However, you may be eligible only AS LONG AS you are available for some employment. (For example, you are available to work during different hours or you are again able to work because you now have care for the family member during working hours). You cannot collect benefits if you are not available to work. You quit because you lost your transportation (other than your own car) to get to and from work, AND there is no other reasonable way to get to work. You quit to protect yourself or a child living with you from domestic violence. You may be asked to show that you tried to keep your job. The Department of Labor (DOL) calls this making "reasonable efforts" to hold onto your job. Reasonable efforts could include asking for a transfer or leave of absence before you quit. The DOL will look at each case individually. You quit a job within 30 days of starting the job because it turned out to be "unsuitable." Reasons a job may be unsuitable include a commute that was too long, or where the job "put at risk your health, safety or morals" -- which usually means you had to travel between 1 a.m. and 6 a.m. If you wait until after 30 days to quit, you will be found to have agreed to the unsuitable condition and be unable to get unemployment compensation. Exceptions are sometimes found even if more than 30 days have passed, depending on the circumstances. For example you may have good cause for quitting if you made repeated complaints about the situation or if the employer promised to fix the situation but still failed to do so. In addition, YOU MUST be able to explain why the job is unsuitable. YOU MUST be able to explain how the conditions of the job caused you problems. YOU MUST tell your employer about the problem and try to work out the problem before quitting unless it would have been useless to have done so. You MAY quit and still get unemployment compensation if you leave part-time work to accept full-time work.

i stand corrected on implying one couldn't get it for any reason, if one quit...

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lisajane

If you're in Australia I think you'd be able to get benefits. According to friends who have been on it, apparently it's not much, like $250 a fortnight, but it's something to live on. You'd also get a reduction of fees if you studied a course. Centrelink has a heap of criteria to actually get it though (I wasn't able to when the money certaintly would've helped), but on the plus side, they've got several different benefits you can get.

I have nothing against people who get benefits if they're disabled or a full time carer or the like, but I've known people who simply get the benefits because they can't be bothered working. I'd suggest you go back to at least part time work and study at night - you appear to have nothing wrong with you or anything to actually hold you back (to have more time to write really isn't a good reason, writers DO have day jobs), so maybe you shouldn't waste tax payers money.

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'Beauty stands and waits with gravity to start her death-defying leap. And he, a little charleychaplin man, who may or may not catch her fair eternal form spreadeagled in the empty air of existence.' - Laurence Felinghetti, 'The Acrobat'

Hodge

You can't claim unemployment benefits if "you can't be bothered working." You have to be actively looking for a job, and if you're not? You lose benefits.

Not to mention unemployment insurance is something every employee pays into with each paycheck.

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Science

lisajane

'Actively looking for a job' simply means that you have a look online at jobs, and submit your resume to them. The people who can't be bothered working do that, and then never show up for interviews. They're still 'actively looking for jobs' by submitting resumes, even if they have no intention of actually getting a job.

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'Beauty stands and waits with gravity to start her death-defying leap. And he, a little charleychaplin man, who may or may not catch her fair eternal form spreadeagled in the empty air of existence.' - Laurence Felinghetti, 'The Acrobat'

Hodge

I don't know how it works in Australia, but in the U.S. you're required to actually interview. The UI office calls prospective employers to make sure you're interviewing.

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Science

ThePrimeDreamer

Hey everyone, thanks for all input. I'm actively searching for a job closely related to writing and reading and it hasn't really born any fruit. And to add even more insult to injury, cash is tight so it's not a stretch that I'm thinking of filing for unemployment. But to add a little color to my story, I had to quit my current job because it was stressful and overbearing. Plus I knew that if I didn't not get out now, I'd probably never get out. But at the moment, I'm mulling over ideas of going back to school, taking writing classes, and now trying to find work outside of writing and reading, so I can at least have a day job. But I do find all these comments about unemployment very helpful.

lisajane

Uh, see previous post?

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'Beauty stands and waits with gravity to start her death-defying leap. And he, a little charleychaplin man, who may or may not catch her fair eternal form spreadeagled in the empty air of existence.' - Laurence Felinghetti, 'The Acrobat'