General Guideline

• Unemployment benefits are reserved for people who cannot work through no fault of their own. You may collect unemployment if you resigned, but only if you can show you had just cause for the resignation.
  
  

What Constitutes Just Cause?

• In general, just cause involves factors that put your health or safety at risk. For example, if your employer isn't complying with OSHA guidelines, or if your employer won't change the cleansers janitorial staff use despite those cleansers irritating your allergies or giving you migraines, you probably would have just cause for leaving. Another example not related to work would be if you had to leave your job due to a domestic violence situation, or if you had to quit work to take care of a sick relative. Just cause does not include simply being unhappy with your job or being criticized by your employer.
  
  

The Hearing

• If you resign, you likely will be required to attend an eligibility hearing. It's best to do this in person, but you can attend by phone. During the hearing, representatives from the unemployment office will interview you about the resignation. They'll ask you questions like why you resigned, whether you tried to resolve the issue that led to the resignation, and what kind of job you want to get. Based on the results of the hearing, the unemployment representative will determine if you have just cause. If you have just cause, the representative will continue to process your application.
  
  

Employer Appeal

• If you file for unemployment after you've resigned, your employer has a right to appeal your application. If the company does this, it will bring evidence to unemployment representatives to illustrate why you shouldn't receive benefits. The right of an employer to appeal, combined with your requirement of showing just cause, is what makes receiving unemployment benefits after resignation so difficult.
  
  

How to Apply

• If you think you have just cause for receiving unemployment benefits after resigning, you can apply with the Department of Labor through your state's unemployment office. In many states, you can apply via phone or online application submission forms. You also can apply in person. You'll need data such as your Social Security number, mailing and contact information, driver's license number, dates of employment, previous earnings, employer mailing and contact information, the date of separation (your resignation date), your mother's maiden name and your employer's federal identification number. If you have moved, you generally should apply in the state in which you worked. You must continue to file claims weekly or biweekly and will need to register for work with the State Unemployment Service.