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possible denial of unemployment benefits

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Robert Glassber

Junior Member
What is the name of your state?What is the name of your state?
This situation is occurring in Iowa.

I was employed as broadband cable direct sales representative and installer. On Jan 19, encountered active customer with TV cable service who now wanted internet connection. She needed extension from living room to bedroom. Previous outside extension had been pulled out by field tech. I made assumption my company would not perform inside connection in her apt building. We did sale of Internet connection and scheduling of installation. I offered my private services to perform inside extension. I knew that purchase of material would be about $30 and proposed $50 as charge to her. She was not interested and we made arrangements for outside extension at no cost to her. She contacted my employer after this meeting. Within two days, my supervisors had a factfinding meeting with me and started a ten-day investigation. During the factfinding, I gave the above details and stated that my intentions were always to aid the customer and not to carve out my own business. On Jan 31, I was informed I was being terminated due to 'appearance of a conflict interest'. Previous to this, in October 2004, I had received a warning letter on an unrelated issue - failure to inform my employer on a motor vehicle accident that occurred immediately before my employment. This was now considered to be the only necessary warning letter and I was consequently terminated.

My question - does my past employer have enough grounds to indicate that I was enough at fault to lose my job and not be eligible for unemployment benefits? Do I have enough to take the bother and file for wrongful termination?
 


cbg

I'm a Northern Girl
You do not have a case for wrongful termination, period. The law does not require that you receive any warning notices at all. Unless you have a binding, enforceable contract (not an offer letter, not a company handbook, not a memo from your supervisor, a CONTRACT) that specifies that you MUST receive a warning letter before you can be fired, you can be fired at any time and for any reason that does not specifically violate the law, and this doesn't. (BTW, if by any chance you DO have such a contract, then you still don't have a case for wrongful termination - you would have a case for breach of contract.) Filing a wrongful term claim would be a waste of time; you don't have a case.

Only an adjudicator from your state's UI board can answer the question of whether or not your employer would prevail in a contesting of benefits for you. But you have nothing to lose by filing for benefits anyway.
 

Robert Glassber

Junior Member
thanks cbq

I have filed for UE benefits. A factfinding interview is scheduled for 2/23. In Iowa, how can I establish needed facts so my UE will not be denied?
 

cbg

I'm a Northern Girl
If you're looking for some kind of guarantee, you can't. All you can do is present the facts with as much back-up documentation as you can. If your employer says something you disagree with, you'll have the opportunity to ask him questions. (He will likewise have the same opportunity to ask you questions.) The burden of proof is on your employer to prove misconduct, not on you to prove otherwise.
 

Robert Glassber

Junior Member
denial of UE

I'm looking for someone with knowledge of Iowa precedence so I would sense whether the actions I had taken falls within the bounds of 'misconduct' or that the HR rep of my former company will find proof difficult
 

cbg

I'm a Northern Girl
To the best of my knowledge, no one who follows these boards has any specific knowledge of what precedents have been set in Iowa unemployment claims.
 

cbg

I'm a Northern Girl
The link doesn't work. But Robert, we DON'T KNOW. There isn't any way we can even hazard a guess based on a one-paragraph post that only gives your side of the story.

If someone else wants to guess they may. But this is my last post. I realize that you just want to know how things are likely to go but my crystal ball is out for cleaning and I'm not prepared to second-guess the adjudicator.
 

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