PA UC eligibility for school employee after no response to interview request? Reasonable assurance letter issue

This is tricky because of the reasonable assurance letter. Generally, school employees can't collect UC during scheduled breaks if they have reasonable assurance of returning. HOWEVER, your situation might qualify as an exception since the school district hasn't followed through on their hiring process and is now unresponsive. The key question is whether that reasonable assurance has essentially been invalidated by their actions (or lack thereof). I would recommend filing for UC immediately and explaining exactly what happened in your claim. Be precise about dates of communication and the lack of response. The worst they can do is deny you, and then you can appeal if needed.

DONT WAIT!!! File asap because even if u get hired last minute youll have waited too long to get benefits for the weeks you were actually unemployed. The UC system is ridiculous with school employees and that reasonable assurance garbage. I went thru something similar last year and it took WEEKS to get sorted out. make sure you save ALL your emails showing you tried to follow up multiple times!!

As someone who works in education HR (not saying where), I can tell you that having a reasonable assurance letter doesn't automatically disqualify you in this situation. The key is that the employer has essentially changed the conditions by 1) scheduling an interview that never happened, 2) postponing with no clear timeline, and 3) not responding to multiple follow-ups. When you file, make sure to check "No" when asked if you have reasonable assurance of returning, and then explain the full timeline in the fact-finding questionnaire they'll send you. UC will likely contact the school district, and if they can't provide evidence that they've maintained the reasonable assurance, you should qualify. Just be prepared that they'll likely put an "issue" on your claim that will need to be resolved before any payments are approved.

just wondering did u sign a contract or just get the letter? big difference with UC rules i think

I had almost the exact situation last year!! Substitute teacher, got the letter, then crickets when trying to confirm my position. PA unemployment put my claim on hold for 6 WEEKS while they "investigated" even though the school never responded to their inquiries either! It was impossible to get anyone on the phone at UC to explain the situation. I finally got through to an actual person at UC by using Claimyr (claimyr.com). They have this service where they connect you directly to an unemployment agent instead of waiting on hold forever. They have a video showing how it works here: https://youtu.be/CEPETxZdo9E?si=WL1ZzVZWG3KiHrg2. The UC agent was able to push my claim through once I explained everything, and I got backpay for all the weeks. In my case, they eventually ruled that the reasonable assurance was invalidated because the school couldn't prove they had made efforts to maintain the employment relationship.

just to be devils advocate what if they call you the day after you file for unemployment lol

My sister had this EXACT problem in 2023!!! She got the letter then they kept putting off interviews and being super vague. She tried calling UC and couldnt get thru to ask if she qualified. She ended up applying for a bunch of other jobs and found something else before school started. The whole reasonable assurance thing is such a scam because schools send those letters to EVERYONE even when they don't have spots for everyone. Then they just hire who they want and everyone else is stuck without benefits all summer. Its seriously messed up.

One more important thing - when you file, you'll have what's called a "between school terms denial" issue placed on your claim automatically. This is standard for all school employees. You'll need to request a determination on this issue explaining why you believe you should qualify despite the reasonable assurance letter. Be very specific about how the school district's actions have invalidated the reasonable assurance - namely: 1. They initiated a new hiring process requiring an interview (suggesting the position wasn't guaranteed) 2. They failed to complete the interview process 3. They stopped responding to inquiries about employment status You'll likely need to wait for a UC examiner to review your case, but if you're persistent and document everything, you have a good chance of qualifying.

I went through something similar as a cafeteria worker a few years back. Got the reasonable assurance letter in May, then they kept saying they were "reviewing staffing needs" all summer. Finally filed for UC in late July after getting the runaround for weeks. The key thing that helped my case was that I documented EVERY contact attempt - emails, phone calls, even showing up in person to HR. UC ruled in my favor because the school couldn't prove they had maintained the reasonable assurance after failing to provide concrete employment details for over 6 weeks. One tip: when you file, make sure you mention that you were actively seeking clarification about your employment status and they failed to respond. That shows you were willing and available to work but the employer didn't hold up their end. Good luck!

This is such a frustrating situation and unfortunately way too common with school districts! I'm a former school secretary and saw this happen to substitutes all the time. The reasonable assurance letter is supposed to guarantee you have a position, but when they start requiring NEW interviews and then ghost you, they've basically broken that assurance. You definitely qualify for UC in this situation. The fact that they asked you to interview shows they didn't consider your position guaranteed from the letter alone. Then their failure to follow through on the interview process and complete lack of communication shows they haven't maintained reasonable assurance. File immediately and be sure to emphasize that YOU were ready and willing to work, but THEY failed to provide you with the promised employment opportunity. Save every email, text, and document any phone calls you made trying to get answers. PA UC will likely contact the school district, and when they can't provide evidence that they maintained reasonable assurance, you should be approved. Don't let them leave you hanging without income because of their poor communication and disorganized hiring process!

I'm going through almost the exact same thing right now! I was a substitute teacher last year and got the reasonable assurance letter in June. They scheduled me for an interview in early August, then called the day before to postpone it "indefinitely." I've called HR three times since then and keep getting told someone will call me back, but nobody ever does. School starts next week and I still don't know if I have a job! Reading through all these responses is giving me hope that I might actually qualify for UC despite the letter. I was so worried that having that letter meant I was automatically disqualified no matter what happened after. It sounds like their failure to follow through on the hiring process and complete lack of communication basically invalidates the reasonable assurance they originally gave us. I'm definitely going to file tomorrow and document everything - all the unreturned calls, the postponed interview, the whole mess. It's crazy that school districts can just leave people hanging like this with no consequences. Thanks everyone for sharing your experiences and advice!