Employer won't allow me to work...should I apply for unemployment or Social Security?

[La Oceane]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? Pennsylvania.

Due to the symptoms of my disability, my employer placed me on an involuntary unpaid leave (my work-site would not be covered by FMLA). Currently, I am trying to assess what benefits I should apply for, as I am unsure if Social Security or unemployment would be more appropriate. My leave is slated to last for four months, but it is not yet set in stone that I will return at the end of that period; whether I come back immediately or whether my leave is extended depends on how my employer deems me to function at that time. A part of me is scared that I might not be permitted to come back at all. My supervisor made it clear that they would disregard any doctor's clearances if they didn't think I was ready to come back.

My primary care doctor cleared me to return to work, but since I received the clearance (about three weeks ago), my mental health issues have really been exacerbated, probably by the stress of having no income. While I am considering applying for temp work, just to tide myself over for a few months, I am not sure if I would be able to function optimally in my current state. The nature of my mental health issue is that it tends to flare up when I am under a lot of stress, so getting accustomed to a new work environment could cause me to destabilize--or alternatively, perhaps having a routine and some income again could help me improve. It's really difficult for me to tell at this point.

Would unemployment or Social Security benefits be the better option? Social Security just sounds like such a hassle, so I am inclined to say I would prefer applying for unemployment since the approval period is not as long, provided of course that I meet the criteria. Since I haven't lost my job, how would the benefits process work--would I have to present a letter from my supervisor explaining the nature of my leave?

 

[cbg]

In order to qualify for unemployment, you need to be able to work, actively looking for work, and available to accept work if offered.

To qualify for Social Security, you need to be either over 62 or be unable to work for at least 12 months.

They are not interchangeable - if you qualify for one, you almost certainly do not qualify for the other.

 

[La Oceane]

In order to qualify for unemployment, you need to be able to work, actively looking for work, and available to accept work if offered.

To qualify for Social Security, you need to be either over 62 or be unable to work for at least 12 months.

They are not interchangeable - if you qualify for one, you almost certainly do not qualify for the other.

I don't think that I would be unable to work for at least 12 months. I am hopeful that I can start working much sooner (although I recognize that things could go south, since my mental condition is rather volatile). The challenge for me is not that I am rendered disabled for months upon end, it's that I experience periods of intense symptoms which disrupt my functioning, and in response my employers decide that I shouldn't work for X number of months until my situation improves. With that being said, it sounds like unemployment would be the better option. I would be willing to apply for other jobs and to document my applications. Can I still apply for it even though I'm technically employed?

 

[cbg]

If you are not working and not being paid, you can apply. Applying is not being approved.

And even if your claim is approved, you need to conduct a job search every single week. Every week that you do not, you will not be eligible for unemployment for that week. Every single week that you are not able to work, you will not be eligible for unemployment for that week.

I'm not saying that you should instead apply for Social Security - I'm saying that there is no guarantee that either option is available to you. You ask which one you should choose as if it's only to decide which one you prefer, but if you don't qualify for either, then you don't get either.

 

[ecmst12]

Duplicate post. Don't start multiple threads on the same situation.

 

[commentator]

Yes, it is a good idea for you to apply at once for unemployment insurance. For a huge reason. You are out of work. The quarters on which unemployment benefits are based are revolving. They move forward as time passes. Any time that you file, you are applying based on the first four of the last five completed quarters of work for a covered employer. This is roughly the last two years. If you have been out of work for several months, you are losing quarters of eligibility. After a while, you will not have any unemployment eligibility left. Even if you've "worked all your life" as many people have told me. Even if you are now able and available and fully released to begin to draw benefits. Because if you've not got the quarters in, no claim, so no unemployment, regardless.

When you do file, it will set up a claim, based on your last covered quarters of work right now, at the time of your filing. This claim will be good any time you start to draw it, for one whole year from the time it is filed, whether you have worked or not. That way, you've saved your claim, for at least a year it will be sitting there.

Unemployment OR disability, it's not a mutually exclusive thing. It costs nothing and there is no downside to filing for unemployment benefits. You either are or are not approved, it is not based on anyone's work record but your own, so you are not using taxpayer resources that otherwise would be saved or used for someone else. The workers get paid the same whether they take your claim or someone else's. There's no penalty for filing and letting them explain to you exactly what it takes to be eligible.

The key in your case is whether you are fully medically released by your treating physician to return to work. They'll ask you to get medical documentation, and will contact your employer to have them explain why THEY say you are no longer working. They do not get to decide if you are qualified for unemployment benefits, that decision is made by the unemployment system, based on all sides of the situation they can obtain and applying unemployment law.

It is not based on your need, your income, your personal situation in any way other than your willingness to accept other work and your fitness to do so. And at no time is it designed to be a substitute for disability. If you are too disabled to work, you are not going to be able to draw unemployment insurance benefits. But file for them anyway.

In the meantime, you'll need to decide if you're going through the process of applying for social security disability, which is a federal program for the permanently disabled, unlike unemployment insurance, which is a state administered program which is temporary, and is only for those who are out of work through no fault of their own and who are able and available for other equivalent work. They'll tell you all about how that works when you file for unemployment benefits, so go on and do so.