Unemployment benifits

[Unlucky28]

The California state-funded agency that was paying for my childcare has stopped making payments to all childcare providers temporarily. Now, I will be forced to quit my job because I cannot afford childcare. Am I eligible for unemployment benifits?

 

[AlmostALawyer]

The following State of California link might provide some guidance. Good luck!

Eligibility

 

[pattytx]

If they don't have any funding, are they closing? Are you being laid off? Or can you not afford childcare because you were getting it subsidized by the company and it isn't doing that any more?

 

[commentator]

Probability isn't very good. Loss of child care is considered a personal issue, particularly if it's "I can't afford child care because I'm not getting my child care stiped any more."

Because after all, to receive unemployment, you must be out of work through no fault of your own, and you're being paid money in wages for working, you are expected to be able to pay for your child care or work something out so that you can work. How you afford child care on your salary isn't really something the state is liable for in the first place, most states haven't ever had anything this generous going on, and they might expect you to use some of your salary to pay your child care expenses.

It also appears from what you are saying that this glitch in the payments might just be temporary. Can you speak with your employer, try to work something out with them, perhaps a temporary leave, or could you enlist someone to sit with the kids or find the resources somewhere to keep you from having to quit the job? The funding may resume later, or you may find another alternative. Another child care program with income support perhaps.

If you do quit your job due to not being able to pay for your child care, and you file for unemployment benefits, the first question they're going to ask you is "how did you try to resolve this problem before quitting?" and I'd think speaking to your employer, talking to your caseworker with social services, trying to find other, cheaper child care options, these things are what you need to work on before you quit the job. The guideline is "did you have a good WORK RELATED reason to quit your job?" This reason sounds pretty personal, would certainly be iffy.

 

[CourtClerk]

It also appears from what you are saying that this glitch in the payments might just be temporary.

The "glitch" in the payments isn't really a glitch. California is BROKE and can't afford all of the social welfare programs anymore. There's no money in the budget.

I kept telling people years ago to stop depending on the government to take care of you because eventually, the gravy train was going to come to a screeching halt.

 

[Unlucky28]

details

I should have been more clear. I used to be a manager for a restaurant. The company downsized and closed down many of its branches. I went on unemployment. As part of recieving unemployment benifits in the state of california, you must be searching for work. I was offered a job with significantly less pay and took it (i figuered SOME work was better than none). Since my wages were dramatically less than before, I signed up to recieve subsidized childcare through the state so I could continue to work. My co-payments were based on the amount of gross pay I earned weekly. There is no "glitch" in the program, the agency sent a letter that no payments will be made to providers until the state budget can be resolved, Between July 2010 to July 2011.

P.S. "gravy train"? lol! the poverty gravy train....

 

[commentator]

Under these very specialized circumstances, you will need to verify everything about the possibility of resuming unemployment benefits with the California unemployment system.

Usually if you accept another job, even if it is much less than what you were making at your old job, as long as it is paying more than your weekly unemployment benefit was, (gross wages, no deductions for expenses) from thenceforth, it becomes your separating employer. So if you quit this job, because you cannot afford the child care, you very likely will be considered to have voluntarily quit for a personal reason. No unemployment.

But please talk to someone in the California system. They might have some sort of special provision, or extra leniency about these assisted child care programs. As I said, most states don't have anything like this, and so I am quite unfamiliar with how these tie in with regular unemployment benefits and leaving your jobs.

I know calling them and talking to a living human being will be very difficult, if possible try to call the "technical services" or "technical assistance" offices in the department that handles unemployment, not just the regular toll free lines, as they usually don't answer, do not answer general questions.

But it looks to me very much like you wouldn't be able to draw again if you quit this job, so think long and hard before you do quit, and get the information about drawing directly from the horse's mouth, in other words, an unemployment person in CA who can look up your old claim, tell you how much you had left on this claim to draw and how their particular system would look at you quitting your job due to not being able to afford child care.

I am sure that that what California's somewhat more generous assistance programs used to be are still no gravy train, but income based child care assistance is quite a rarity throughout the nation. But unemployment insurance is not a needs based program, so if you accepted another job and are working there and making even minimum wage, you're considered to be fully employed, no longer entitled to what you made on the old job, and if you quit, it's considered to be a personal choice.

 

[Unlucky28]

.....

Thank you! Your advice was very helpful.