Emplyer's Refusal to give Letter of Termination
My friend recently got a letter from the NYS Dept. of Labor telling her that her request for unemploymeny benefits was denied because her former employer contends that she voluntarily quit on Dec. 24, 2003. She disagrees, saying that she was fired on Dec. 29 and has written a letter to NYSDOL stating such. She called her former office and asked them for a letter of termination for her "own personal records". They absolutely refuse to give it her, saying that she doesn't need it for anything. Will their refusal to deal in good faith by giving her a letter be helpful to her in her appeal of the Board's decision to deny her benefits?
1 answer | asked Feb 2, 2004 11:34 PM [EST] | applies to New York
Answers (1)
There is a little known law in New York State that requires an employer to send a terminated employee a letter that includes the employee's date of termination. Employers routinely ignore this law, and there is no way that I know of to easily and cheaply enforce the law. But, your friend isn't out in the cold.
When it comes to Unemployment Compensation, it isn't uncommon for the employer to say the employee resigned, denying that it fired the employee. In that situation, what the employee needs to do is appeal the Unemployment Compensation Board decision to cut off benefits based on the employer's statement. The denial should tell you how to file the appeal.
Once the appeal is filed, UCB will schedule a hearing. Although I do not handle very many UCB appeals, my understanding is that employees who were truly fired stand a good chance of succeeding in these appeals.
posted by David M. Lira | Feb 3, 2004 09:24 AM [EST]
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