[North Carolina] Determined ineligible for benefits after job refusal and now must repay the state

[coloraydo]

I am confused amount my current situation I applied for unemployment on 5/2/21 and received payments through 8/28/21. on 7/20/21 I turned down a job as a bank teller for 15 dollars an hour or $600 a week. The benefit I was receiving was $650 a month. $350 from the state and then the supplemental $300 from the pandemic relief.

The relevant statue in my letter was N.C. Gen. Stat. § 96-14.9(f) with the relevant part being. "After the
first ten weeks and during the remaining weeks of a benefit period, the Division must consider any employment
offer paying 120% of the individual's weekly benefit amount to be suitable work."

My question is does that $300 dollars of supplemental payment not go into account when calculating that 120% number?

 

[vlavender]

@coloraydo No it does not.

 

[coloraydo]

@vlavender Well that sucks but thank you for the reply. I am pretty cough off guard and miffed by the whole situation.

I was given bad advice by the unemployment office when I called and asked before turning down the job. The pay for the job was not given until the interview and I didn't realize what the pay level was I should have just shut it down then, but I finished the interview. I was applying for another position at the same company more relevant and suited to my previous pay and work qualifications and did not want to leave a bad impression.

Just sucks to get kicked in the butt right when you are getting back on your feet.

 

[vlavender]

@coloraydo Your biggest mistake was actually reporting that. We try to be honest and then look what happens. Now, it's not completely over. There is a little hope. You should look up your specific state law but in general you are not allowed to decline a genuine OFFER. if they didn't actually make an official offer you can argue you never actually declined a job offer.

 

[desperate80]

@coloraydo You mean per week? In the South, you're lucky to get 12.50 hour as a entry level bank teller and you're telling us you refused 15/hr? Pretty much deserved the audit and having to pay that back. Some of you let UI go completely to your heads and those of you who did just needs too many people to hold your hands with it.

Of course you're not going to count PUA boost towards your GD threshold to take a job offer. Why even ask that question here?

 

[coloraydo]

@desperate80 You are correct that is high for a bank teller but that is not my full circumstance. Before I lost my job I was making almost double that with a master degree in my field and the student loan payments to go with that. Making that amount would not be sustainable long term. In less than a month after that I found a job in my field making pay close to what it was before. Should I have not applied for a job I was extremally overqualified for yeah... but that I also don't think that is a $3200 mistake.

Why is that such an outlandish question? No where in the statute does it say your base benefit I even reached out to several unemployment lawyers and they were unclear on if it would because it is new law and they have not had direct experience.

**Edit spelling

Why make such a negative comment its completely free to just not say anything?

 

[jamaix]

@coloraydo Yep, it refers to your WBA not WBA + FPUC. You need to appeal and you can make an argument that the job was not suitable work. Look up you the qualifications in your state and see what fits.

Unfortunately, it seems that you will likely lose this battle if you turned it down solely because of the pay being less than what you were getting from UI (including the supplement) But making the argument you turned it down in hopes of getting the other job, might help. Good Luck to you.

 

[coloraydo]

@jamaix Thanks for the help unfortunately in NC after 10 weeks it looks like it is a bright line test of 120%.

 

[jamaix]

@coloraydo That would be contrary ro federal law. The state can't force you to take a job that is unsuitable, meaning contrary to your morals or conscience, too far away, not within your skillset, etc.

The problem in your situation is that it sounds like this job was indeed suitable and you merely turned it down solely based on making more on UI. That is not allowed and in some states, it is construed as fraud.

 

[elizabella]

@coloraydo It doesn't cost you anything to appeal and there may be something in the way the Division of Employment Security interprets that section that breaks in your favor.

There may have been Covid regulations that were in place during that time that we don't know about, or the Division can interpret those two sections liberally and in favor of claimants, or you may just get lucky and get a new hearing officer who doesn't know what they're doing and they help you out by pure luck.