Are my voluntary quit for good cause claims valid? (Richmond: 2014, insurance)

[WestTerrace]

I reside in Richmond, VA. I was laid off Nov 2014 and began collecting UIB at the end of the mth while I diligently looked for suitable wk. I accepted a position I believed to be suitable and was eager to get back to work. I was told upon my start date on 2/4/15 that I would require a car to complete part of the job duties and I agreed that I would purchase one early March now that I had a job and income. At the time of hiring I was not aware that I wld not receive my first paycheck until 3/6/15 based on their payroll cycle. At the time I accepted work I had some money for transportation but not enough to last for an entire mth w/o pay. The employer was aware that I had no car and that I had a lift to work and took a taxi home afterwork. My ride to work fell thru after a few days because she accepted a position elsewhere and wasn't going on the direction of my work. Also I wasn't aware that I would incur employment related costs for mandatory test which were costly (finger printing & drug screen testing) and not reimburseable. I also had to pay for taxis to the testing sites because there's no public transportation available. I completely used whatever money I had set aside for transportation within the 1st few days. With very little money left to commute and to eat, I spoke with the employer on 2/8 asking for assistance and to notify her of my problem. She mentioned that advances are offered but wouldn't qualify given the short period of time employed. I told her I had no source of transportation, looked at public transportation but it would take me over an hour to get to work and included a lengthy walk from bus stop. I also had no money for bus fare for an entire month and that I wld have to resign which she understood. I resigned officially in writing stating the reason on 2/9. I have a fact finding mtg with a deputy on 3/9. How do I get my UIB back? There's still 7K available for payment on my claim. I hope I have provided enough information.

[johnsonkk]

So you quit in less than a week because you already were out of money or because you were going to be out of money by the end of the month? Your case doesn't sound very promising. An hour bus ride or travel time to work is routine in the DC area. If all your expenses and a couple pay-up-front costs threw a wrench in your income, then how was a car even in your plans?

You asked for opinions but it doesn't appear promising. Maybe your next job will be closer and hopefully you find one before early March so that your hearing becomes a moot point.

[WestTerrace]

I quit bc I was misled by the employer by not being told what the costs were upfront. Also I planned to purchase a car with my first full paycheck along with my tax return which would be the 1st week of March. Had I known what the costs were upfront, I would have known that the position was not suitable and that I didn't have the means to sustain employment for an entire month before receiving my first paycheck. Furthermore, it takes 1hr 10mins to travel by public transportation and only 15 mins by car because of the bus route. I incurred almost $200 in fees associated with the required employment testing alone which is no small amount when you're starting anew after being unemployed.

[spencgr]

There is an Unemplyment sub-forum here. If you ask the Mods to move this, you might get better responses.

[johnsonkk]

Originally Posted by spencgr

There is an Unemplyment sub-forum here. If you ask the Mods to move this, you might get better responses.

Being that each state runs their unemployment programs, this might be a proper forum but either way, he's not getting any solid answers (I don't know either). Perhaps the general unemployment forum will help and surely a call to the state unemployment insurance office will provide an initial opinion for him but the answer would be more useful before quitting but now their answer will have an immediate impact.

Still not understanding why a temporary, hour bus ride is a reason to quit a job that might fund a car with a couple months of work. Maybe if those months extended, one could bike the same distance as driving a car.