PA UC terminated for gifting coworker - rule violation showing on claim - will I get benefits?

This is what we call a "discharged for willful misconduct" situation, which can definitely complicate your UC claim. The fact that there's a rule violation marker means the employer likely contested your claim by reporting the merchandise gifting as a policy violation. The timing doesn't usually matter as much as the nature of the violation itself. PA UC will investigate whether your actions constituted willful misconduct under their guidelines. You should expect to receive a Notice of Determination letter (usually takes 2-3 weeks) explaining whether they approved or denied your benefits based on the investigation. If denied, you'll have 15 days to file an appeal for a hearing where you can explain your side more fully.

lol ur screwed, giving away merch is straight up theft. happened to my cousin at target and they denied his benefits and made him pay back the cost of stuff he gave away. PA UC doesnt play with that stuff

Your situation has some nuances that might help your case. If the item was promotional material or was going to be discarded, that's different from stealing actual merchandise. Also, the 5-month gap between incident and termination could work in your favor if you can show they didn't treat it as serious when it happened. The key for your hearing will be: 1) Was there a clear policy about promotional items? 2) Did you knowingly violate it? 3) Was the violation serious enough to justify termination? I'd recommend gathering any documentation showing the item was promotional/disposable, any employee handbook sections about such items, and any positive performance reviews between November and April to demonstrate they didn't consider it serious initially.

Ugh the PA unemployment system is such a nightmare!! I went through something like this last year and it took FOREVER to resolve. They put a hold on my claim for 11 WEEKS while they "investigated" even though I had documentation proving I was terminated unfairly. The worst part is you can NEVER get through to anyone on the phone to ask questions - I tried calling literally 97 times in one day!!! The system is designed to make people give up!!

I had a rule violation marker on my claim last year after being fired from warehouse work. Different situation, but I learned these "willful misconduct" cases almost always require a hearing to resolve. In my experience, if you can prove ANY of these things, you might still get benefits: 1. The rule wasn't consistently enforced (did others give away promo items without permission?) 2. The rule wasn't clear or well-communicated 3. The violation wasn't serious enough to justify firing 4. You had good reason to think giving the item away was acceptable The fact they waited 5 months is definitely unusual and could help your case. When I was fighting my case, I found a service called Claimyr that helped me actually get through to a UC agent. Their site is claimyr.com and they have a demo video at https://youtu.be/CEPETxZdo9E?si=WL1ZzVZWG3KiHrg2 showing how it works. It was the only way I could get specific answers about my violation status without waiting for mail.

wait did u admit to giving away the thing on ur application?? cuz if u did thats basically admiting guilt. when i got fired for somethin similar i just said we had a disagreement about policy interpretation not that i broke a rule

The timing of everything here is really important. In PA, when there's a significant delay between an incident and termination (like your 5-month gap), the employer needs to explain that delay. Courts have sometimes viewed long delays as evidence that the misconduct wasn't serious enough to justify immediate termination. Document EVERYTHING about the timeline - when the incident occurred, that you had a positive review after it, when it was reported, and when action was taken. And just to set expectations - with an unresolved issue flag, your payments will be held until a determination is made. If approved, you'll get backpay for all eligible weeks. If denied, definitely appeal! The appeal success rate for claimants is surprisingly high.

Based on recent experience with PA UC cases, determination letters are taking about 3-4 weeks right now. If it goes to a hearing, add another 4-6 weeks. It's definitely not quick, unfortunately. One more thing - if you haven't already, make sure you're still filing your weekly certifications even while this issue is pending. If you stop filing but eventually win your case, you won't get paid for weeks you didn't certify, even if you were eligible.

just curious what kind of job was this? retail? because different industries have different standards for what counts as misconduct

One last piece of advice - when you eventually get your Notice of Determination, read it VERY carefully. If denied, the specific reason they cite for denial will be crucial for your appeal strategy. For example, if they deny because "employee knowingly violated established policy" your appeal would focus on proving either you didn't know about the policy OR that the policy wasn't consistently enforced. If they cite "theft of company property" you'd focus on proving the items weren't considered valuable inventory. The most successful appeals are the ones that directly address the specific reason given in the determination, rather than trying to make general character arguments.

I've been following unemployment cases in PA for a while, and your situation actually has some promising elements. The 5-month delay between incident and termination is really significant - PA UC looks at whether the employer's response was proportional and timely. If they truly considered it serious misconduct, why wait until someone reported it months later? Also, the fact that you had a positive performance review in January (after the November incident) suggests your employer didn't view it as misconduct at the time. This could be strong evidence that the termination was more about workplace politics than actual policy violation. Keep documenting everything - the timeline, your positive review, any evidence about similar incidents being handled differently, and especially anything showing the promotional items were considered disposable. Your case isn't as hopeless as some people are suggesting. I've seen similar cases get approved, especially when there's evidence the employer's response was delayed and disproportionate.