Temp Job NJ (claim, fill, work, UI)

[winston12]

In May 2013 I accepted a temp job with a company in NJ for $15 an hour. At the time the job posting said the position would require 10-12 hours a day with work 6-7 days a week. My weekly UI rate was $408 at the time, so I figured with the OT this job would be profitable. The first few weeks of the job were as described, plenty of hours available every day; however in the last 6 weeks or so I've been barely getting 30 hour a week, and sometimes I'd have to drive over an hour away as there are job sites sporadic around the Jersey shore.

I obviously haven't claimed UI benefits since I began this job, I tried to claim partial benefits a few weeks ago and it said my claim had been pended and to call one of the various phone numbers which of course I couldn't reach. I'm going to try to stop by the One Stop center on Monday.

This temp job is probably going to be over within the next 8 weeks or so as they're under a state contract, however is there any way I can resume on UI benefits without NJ asking too many questions? Is the lack of hours and hour commute reasonable enough to 'quit' the temp job and still be able to resume my benefits? The job positing I had originally replied to had the job site in the next town over, about a 5 minute drive, and that combined with all the OT they stated was available is the prime reason I accepted the job.

I feel like the hassle, time, gas costs of this job isn't worth it if I'm not making substantially more then on UI. I was on Tier 2 when I accepted the job, so I definitely have a claim balance left. Also, my BYE is approaching in a few weeks I believe as it'll be 1 year since I originally applied for UI benefits; I would also prefer not to have any low wage weeks from this temp job affect my UI weekly rate going forward.

Thanks.

[Chyvan]

Some of the stuff you describe can be good cause to quit, but the problem is that the second you are told that things are changing for the worst, you have to immediately tell the employer, "no, I'm not doing that that's not what the deal was," and you have to be able to prove that you did say that to the employer, and that things truly were changing for the worst.

Once you play the good sport, it's perceived by the UI people that you accepted the adverse change in your terms in employment, and then you lose your good cause quit.

Even if you do reject the adverse changes of employment, because it is a quit, the burden is on you. So if you say they were making you drive all over town rather than just 5 minutes like you used to. The employer can say, "no we didn't" so you're going to have to be able to prove it, and that's usually tough to do. If you say you complained to your employer, the employer can say, "this is the first we're hearing of it." Again, tough to prove when it's verbal. Then so many that do quit when good cause is present, write some of the worst letters of resignation so they might still get a good reference like, "my life is going in a different direction, but I loved working here, and I'm so sorry I need to leave." You can be pretty sure the employer will submit that letter to the UI people, and then how are you going to convince anyone that adverse changes were driving your decision.

Also, I quit my job when my hours were cut and I lost my health insurance. I did everything right to make my case for a good cause quit. I didn't get my first check until 363 days later. I had to appeal the decision 5 times, and that takes time (as in waiting, not so much real work), worry, and the risk I'd screw up in some way that instead of being judged on the merits, it gets dismissed because I didn't fill something out right, or the paperwork was misplaced and treated as a late filing. So, yes, I did succeed, but if you don't have the financial resources to see this through if things don't go your way from the beginning, then you're going to end up wishing you'd just waited the 8 weeks for the job to end on it's own.