Layoffs and unemployment were on the rise as the U.S. economy slowed in August of 2022, MarketWatch reported. Unemployment benefit numbers climbed in the summer months of 2022, and 260,000 people applied for unemployment at the end of July.
But laid-off employees aren’t the only ones looking to collect unemployment benefits. Individuals who recently quit may also seek a jobless claim. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, 4.2 million Americans quit their jobs in June 2022.
If you’ve recently quit your job and are wondering if you qualify for unemployment benefits, an employment attorney is here to answer your questions.
Can you get unemployment if you quit?
Generally, unemployment insurance is only available only to those who lost their job through no fault of their own, USAGov states. This can sometimes refer to layoffs or company downsizing.
But according to National Employment Law Project staff attorney Jenna Gerry, there are ways to get unemployment if you quit.
“The key to collecting unemployment insurance, and whether you’re eligible to quit, is whether you had a good cause to quit that job,” Gerry told USA TODAY. “A lot of states will (ask), ‘Would a reasonable person in your situation have stayed at the job?’”
