No determination still Pended. (collect, receive, claim, work)

[Ashlyn00]

Is not accepting a 20% pay cut to a lower salary after 18 months of employment valid in NJ? ? This pay cut would’ve been even lower than my starting salary and I was there for a year and a half. I even received an increase during my 1 year review however bosses changed and someone higher up didn’t like me and I was offered this new pay and position due to not doing a good job all of a sudden. I was told I had no choice. 20% cut or no job. I chose not to accept this especially because it was done out of maliciousness from someone who didn’t like me. Will be disqualified? Still “pended” online as of Friday was told a determination wasn’t met when I called too. I was asked to send proof this new salary was lower than my starting salary which I sent. I hope that was to help and not harm. What would take so long when they have bother sides already? Both stories match based on my claim interview minus the starting salary . I didn’t even know that was legal to do to an employee and I still don’t know. If I’m still pended is it a good chance I should just assume I’ll be denied? The circumstances were unfortunate and I felt put in a bind so they can say you left not “fired”. My salary and position no longer existed so I considered that fired due to not having work.

[Chyvan]

You are correct. You were fired. However, you sent in stuff about the paycut, therefore all by yourself you made it look like a quit. Quitting over a paycut (you also mention new position, that's a change in duties and is additive to the paycut) is good cause, BUT that means the burden is on you to prove that your pay would be cut and job changed AND that you made some effort to get the employer to put things back the way they were. For some, that's really hard because most employers do it verbally, and the employee doesn't know they have to prove an attempt to keep things the same, and then fail at getting UI for a stupid reason. When you had your interview, you should have kept screaming, "I was fired."

Just let it be pended. This is probably going to be sorted out at an appeal hearing anyway.

Fortunately, in NJ, there is a possibility of a two step disqualification:

If it's determined that you quit without good cause. I think you did because it was a CHANGE to your job. That would allow you to get benefits.

The next would be was the job that they offered you suitable. If it was, that's a 4-week disqualification. If not, then there is no disqualification.

Really, so long as you mentioned the CHANGED job position and duties, the worst you're looking at is a 4-wk DQ. If you didn't, then 20% paycut is about enough. However, I'm not so sure why they wanted your starting salary. That as irrelevant and you shouldn't have provided it. The 20% is based on your salary YESTERDAY, and what they want to pay you starting now. Imagine you had started 5 years ago, and the cut just put you back to where you were 5 years ago. You made the issue out of the wrong thing.

If it goes to a hearing, we'll work on your story so that you don't confuse a hearing officer, and have all the correct elements to be awarded benefits.

[Ashlyn00]

Thanks for your reply. They asked for proof because I wanted to justify why I didn’t think that new salary was acceptable. It was lower than where I started. It was done for malicious reasons. I’m hoping they can see that from a human point of view.

[Chyvan]

Originally Posted by Ashlyn00

It was lower than where I started.

The better reason is because it's just less than what you're getting right now. There is also the fact you said it was a "new position." That means different job duties. You are entitled to a job that uses your highest skill set unless you voluntarily chose to sell yourself short.

For example, out of high school you could have been a bagger that worked your way up to being the manager of a grocery store. Do you honestly think it's ok if they busted you back to a bagger because, "that's what you were when you started."? It can be if you want it to, but if you want, you're allowed to treat it as a firing, a firing from your manager job, and a refusal of "new work" as a bagger, and go look for other manager jobs at other grocery stores and collect your UI in the process.

You want to present things in the best possible light to get UI.

I lived this so I know what I'm talking about. I had a great job that was 36 hours a week. They tried to bust me back to a part-time person with no benefits like I should be glad to have a job. I hadn't been trained on how to make the best case to UI, and I fumbled through the system for 12 months before I got my first UI check. I don't want you to be me.

I was repeatedly told that I "quit without good cause." Then I started to say I was "fired from the job that I had and refused work," and got a little more sympathy and eventually succeeded. So few quitters get UI that you need to avoid that classification as much as possible, and lay it on thick about how inferior what they were offering was to what you are really capable of doing.

[Ashlyn00]

Thanks for the advice. I hope I hear something soon.