Can you get unemployment if you are forced to resign from NYS Department of Labor perspective?
My supervisor at the warehouse has been making my life hell for the past two months. She's been scheduling me for impossible shifts, writing me up for things other employees don't get in trouble for, and yesterday she told me I could either resign or she'd find a reason to fire me within the week. I felt like I had no choice but to quit today. Does NYS Department of Labor consider this constructive dismissal? Can I still file for unemployment benefits even though I technically resigned? I'm really worried they'll deny my claim since I wasn't actually fired.
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Fatima Al-Rashid
Yes, you can potentially qualify for unemployment benefits if you were constructively discharged. NYS Department of Labor recognizes that sometimes employees are forced to resign due to intolerable working conditions. You'll need to document everything - the impossible schedules, discriminatory treatment, and especially that ultimatum your supervisor gave you. When you file your claim, make sure to explain in detail why you felt you had no choice but to resign. The key is proving that a reasonable person in your situation would have felt compelled to quit.
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Jamal Brown
•Thank you! I do have some text messages from coworkers about the scheduling issues and I wrote down dates when the write-ups happened. Should I mention the ultimatum specifically when I file my weekly claims?
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Giovanni Rossi
this happened to my brother last year and he got approved but it took forever. nys department of labor will probably put your claim in adjudication to investigate whether you had good cause to quit
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Jamal Brown
•How long did the adjudication take for your brother? I'm already stressed about money and can't afford to wait months for a decision.
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Aaliyah Jackson
Document everything NOW while it's fresh in your memory. NYS Department of Labor will want specific examples of the intolerable conditions. Write down exact dates, times, witnesses present, and what was said or done. If you have any written evidence like emails, texts, or performance reviews that show the pattern of harassment, gather those too. The more documentation you have, the stronger your case will be during the adjudication process.
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KylieRose
THE SYSTEM IS RIGGED AGAINST WORKERS! I had a similar situation and NYS Department of Labor still denied me even though my boss was clearly trying to force me out. They said I should have tried to resolve it through HR first, but my company didn't even have HR! These adjudicators don't understand what it's like to work for abusive supervisors.
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Fatima Al-Rashid
•I'm sorry that happened to you, but constructive dismissal cases can be won with proper documentation. The key is showing you exhausted reasonable alternatives before resigning. If there was no HR department, that actually strengthens the case that you had no other recourse.
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Miguel Hernández
I was in a somewhat similar situation last year where my manager was making my work environment unbearable. I tried calling NYS Department of Labor multiple times to get guidance before quitting but could never get through to anyone. Finally found this service called Claimyr (claimyr.com) that helped me actually reach a real person at NYS Department of Labor to discuss my options. They have a video demo at https://youtu.be/qyftW-mnTNI that shows how it works. Ended up filing my claim and got approved after adjudication, but having that conversation beforehand really helped me understand what documentation I needed.
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Jamal Brown
•That's really helpful! I've been trying to call NYS Department of Labor for days but keep getting busy signals. Did you use Claimyr before or after you filed your claim?
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Miguel Hernández
•I used it before I even quit to understand my options. The NYS Department of Labor rep explained exactly what would constitute good cause for leaving and what evidence I should gather. Made the whole process much less stressful.
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Sasha Ivanov
Wait, so if you quit you can still get unemployment?? I thought only people who got fired could collect benefits. This is confusing because I always heard you have to be terminated through no fault of your own.
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Fatima Al-Rashid
•Generally you're right, but there are exceptions for good cause. Constructive discharge is when working conditions become so intolerable that a reasonable person would feel forced to quit. NYS Department of Labor treats these cases like involuntary terminations if you can prove the circumstances.
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Liam Murphy
just file and see what happens, worst they can do is say no
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Jabari-Jo
I went through something very similar about 6 months ago. My manager was creating a hostile work environment and eventually told me I could resign or be terminated for "performance issues" that were clearly fabricated. I documented everything - the conversations, dates, witnesses, even took photos of the impossible tasks I was being assigned. When I filed for unemployment, NYS Department of Labor did put my claim into adjudication, but I was ultimately approved. The key things that helped my case were: 1) I had written evidence of the ultimatum, 2) I could show a pattern of discriminatory treatment, and 3) I demonstrated that I had no reasonable alternative but to quit. The process took about 8 weeks, but I did receive back pay for the entire period. Don't let anyone tell you it's hopeless - constructive discharge is a real thing and NYS Department of Labor does recognize it when properly documented.
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Ruby Garcia
•This is really encouraging to hear from someone who actually went through it successfully! Eight weeks sounds manageable compared to some of the horror stories I've read. When you say you had "written evidence of the ultimatum" - was that like an email or text, or did you write down what was said right after the conversation? I'm kicking myself because my supervisor said it verbally and I didn't think to document it immediately.
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Sean Fitzgerald
•@Jabari-Jo This gives me so much hope! I'm in almost the exact same boat - my supervisor gave me that ultimatum yesterday but it was all verbal. I did write everything down as soon as I got home though, including the exact words she used and the time it happened. Do you think that kind of contemporaneous documentation would still carry weight with NYS Department of Labor, or do they really need something like an email or text message? Also, did you file your claim immediately after quitting or wait a few days to gather more evidence first?
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Connor O'Neill
•@Jabari-Jo Your experience is really reassuring! I'm actually the original poster and your situation sounds incredibly similar to mine. I'm wondering - during the adjudication process, did NYS Department of Labor contact your former employer to verify your claims? I'm worried my supervisor might lie about what happened since there were no witnesses to our conversation yesterday. Also, did you have a lawyer or any other help navigating the process, or did you handle everything yourself? I want to make sure I don't mess up the filing since I really need these benefits.
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Yara Nassar
•@Jabari-Jo Thank you for sharing your success story! It's really helpful to hear from someone who actually made it through the process. I'm curious about the timeline - you mentioned 8 weeks total, but how long did it take from when you first filed until they put it into adjudication? I'm trying to plan my finances and wondering if there's any way to get even partial benefits while the investigation is happening. Also, when you documented the "impossible tasks," did you take photos of actual work assignments or schedules? I have some pretty unreasonable scheduling demands from my supervisor but wasn't sure if photos would be useful evidence for NYS Department of Labor.
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