If you were terminated from your employment in Pennsylvania and applied for unemployment benefits, your employer is then contacted by the Unemployment Compensation Board and asked to submit supporting evidence regarding the reason for your termination.

Employers will frequently establish the reasons for the termination and the Board of Review will determine if the employee is eligible for UC benefits. After you apply for benefits, you will receive a Notice of Determination stating whether or not your eligible for unemployment.

If your unemployment benefits are denied in PA, it’s most likely due to Section 402(e) of the Unemployment Compensation Law. Section 402(e) deals with work-related misconduct. What usually occurs is an employee violates an employer’s rule or conduct that an employer expects from their employees. This can range from absenteeism, to insubordination, to not following the employer’s policies or guidelines when performing job duties.

Section 402(e) is the section related to “willful misconduct.” Willful misconduct is not specifically defined, but courts have interpreted it to mean “an act of wanton or willful disregard of the employer’s interests, a deliberate violation of the employer’s rules, a disregard of the standards of behavior which the employer has a right to expect of an employee, or negligence indicating an intentional disregard of the employer’s interests or of the employee’s duties and obligations to the employer.” Brady v. Unemployment Compensation Board of Review, 115 Pa. Commw. 221, 539 A.2d 936 (Pa. Cmwlth. 1988).

If your unemployment benefits were denied because of 402(e), you will have an opportunity to argue that the employer has not met their burden of establishing the existence of a rule or a violation of the rule.  You could also argue that the employer has not met their burden of establishing that the violation was done willfully, knowingly, intentionally, or negligently. Furthermore, even if you do admit to knowingly violating the rule, you could even argue that you had good cause to violate the rule depending on your reasons for the violation.

In order to establish these defenses, the experience of an attorney is vital to develop the record for these defenses so you can win your unemployment appeal. If you received a Notice of Determination denying your PA UC benefits, you have just 15 days to appeal so you must act quickly. If you would like to be represented during your appeal or are interested in a consultation, call (484) 362-9286.

If you applied for unemployment benefits in Pennsylvania and your claim was denied, you may be wondering if you can appeal, how the appeal process works, and whether you need an attorney.

The first thing to be aware of is that the time to appeal a PA UC denial is just 15 days. After you apply for PA UC benefits, you’ll receive a Notice of Determination which lists the office’s findings and whether or not the Claimant is entitled to unemployment benefits. If the Board of Review determines you are eligible for benefits, your employer can appeal the decision. If the Board of Review determines that the Claimant is ineligible for benefits, the Claimant can appeal the decision for a UC referee hearing.

There are three reasons a claim can be denied: (1) the employee didn’t work for the employer long enough; (2) the employee voluntarily quit; or (3) the employee was terminated for willful misconduct, which is often the case for the denial of benefits. Often times a rule violation is presented as the reason for the denial, but this reason for denying UC benefits can be challenged on several grounds.

To see if you would be able to successfully appeal the UC determination, speak to an Attorney immediately. We offer consultations to see if we can present any defenses that would provide you with the ability to challenge the determination and make you eligible to receive unemployment benefits.

If you appeal the Notice of Determination, you’ll then be given a hearing date with an unemployment compensation referee. The referee will hear testimony from the employer and the employee to determine the Claimant’s eligibility for unemployment benefits. The Claimant has the opportunity to cross-examine the employer and any witnesses presented by the employer.  The Claimant can also present their own witness to support their claims.

While the Claimants is allowed to have legal representation, a Claimant can represent themselves. However, the experience of an attorney is often necessary to successfully appeal a denial of UC benefits. In order to win an appeal, every element of why you are eligible for benefits must be established. Missing getting a key fact into the record could be the difference between receiving or being denied benefits.

If you would like a case evaluation, we’ll be able to determine whether you are eligible for PA UC benefits if your claim has been denied. Call (484) 362-9286 to speak about your claim. You can win your PA UC appeal!

If your Pennsylvania unemployment compensation (UC) benefits claim was denied and you missed the deadline to file your appeal, you’re probably wondering if you still have a chance to receive PA UC benefits. In some cases, you can still successfully appeal your PA UC determination even if you are late in filing the appeal.

In Pennsylvania, employees are given just 15 days from the Notice of Determination to file an appeal in order to obtain a referee hearing, who will hear testimony form the employer and employee and determine whether the employee is eligible for PA UC benefits. 15 days is not a whole lot of time and often times employees miss the appeal deadline.

Section 501(e) is the section that applies to the time limit for PA UC appeals. This section states that the time limit is mandatory and can only be extended beyond the time limit when “through acts of fraud, the authorities have denied the claimant the right to appeal.” An example of fraud would be the unemployment office mailing you a notice several days after the mailed on date indicates on the notice depriving you of the opportunity to appeal.

Furthermore, in some limited circumstances, an appeal nunc pro tunc may be granted. This occurs if the appeal is late due to non-negligent circumstances and an appeal is filed within a very short time after the deadline. The best example of circumstances when a nunc pro tunc would be permitted is if the Claimant had a medical or family emergency and they did not have access to their mail.

If you missed the deadline to appeal your PA UC benefits determination and wondering if you would be able to appeal despite the untimeliness of the appeal, please call (484) 362-9286 for a consultation.