Can you get unemployment for job abandonment in Texas TWC?

Yeah it was a certified letter, I signed for it. It explicitly says 'terminated for job abandonment.' I saved the envelope too.

That letter could genuinely help you. Keep it and anything else you have in writing about the safety complaints.

Hmm, I always thought abandonment automatically meant no benefits no matter what. Sounds like it's more complicated than that.

My situation is so similar to yours - I had no idea there might be a flag I can't see. I'm going to look into that today.

Can that service help you find out what specific documents TWC is waiting on? That's what I'd want to know before my own adjudication closes.

The agent I spoke with told me exactly what information was missing on my end. So yes, that kind of detail is what comes out of the call.

So even though they technically fired me, TWC might still view it as a constructive quit situation? And if I can show good cause I might still qualify?

Basically yes - TWC looks at what actually happened, not just the label on the termination letter. Your documented attempts to get the problem fixed are what matter most.

This is the part I've never understood about these cases. The employer calls it abandonment, the worker says unsafe conditions, and TWC has to sort out whose version is closer to the truth.

That's what worries me. I have the documentation but I still have to actually get it in front of someone at TWC during adjudication.

Make sure you upload everything you can through UBS. Don't wait for them to ask.

Sorry you got denied - did you end up appealing it?

No, by the time I got the denial I had already started a new job so I let it go. Probably should have appealed.

Oh I definitely have been using those words interchangeably in my head, thank you for clarifying that.

Yeah I mixed these up constantly when I was going through my own claim. Thought adjudication meant I'd already lost something.

Super common confusion. The process feels so opaque that it's easy to assume the worst at every stage.

Yes, I've been submitting them every two weeks through UBS. I've been paranoid about missing one.

Good - a lot of people stop requesting payments during adjudication thinking there's no point, then lose those weeks forever if they win.

This is such an important thing to know. Keep those requests going no matter what.

Two months is tough to hear but I'm glad it worked out. I have emails and a printed incident report from when I first raised the conveyor issue.

Those incident reports are gold honestly. Way better than just saying 'I told my supervisor verbally.

Wait so TWC actually investigates the why behind the abandonment? I thought they just took the employer's categorization.

Definitely not - they contact both sides and make their own determination. That's what adjudication is for.

This is reassuring to read even if the wait is stressful.

Travis County is five per week yes. But the number that actually counts is what's in the letter TWC mailed you, not what someone says in a forum. If your letter says five, then five.

Got the letter, it says five. Just wanted to confirm I was reading it right.

Always go by the letter - that's the official word on your specific requirement.

Proactive is smarter. If TWC has your documentation in hand before they close the adjudication, they can factor it in. Waiting to be asked risks them deciding before they see it.

That makes sense - I'll stop waiting for a request and just upload what I have.

I uploaded my incident reports yesterday after reading the earlier comments in this thread. Better to have it there.

The silence is genuinely maddening. I check UBS every morning hoping something changed overnight.

Every single morning, refreshing like it's going to magically update at 8am.

TWC updates their systems at night so checking first thing in the morning after the overnight update is actually the right move.

Appeal within 14 calendar days of when the determination was mailed - that date is printed at the top of the letter. You file through UBS, in person at a Workforce Solutions office, or by mail or fax. Phone and email don't count for appeals.

14 days from the mailing date, got it. Good to know before I need it.

I almost missed my appeal window because I thought the 14 days started from when I received the letter, not when it was mailed. Those are different.

I hadn't thought about it that way - I was treating the letter as a liability but maybe it's actually useful.

Exactly - it documents a chain of events. You raised safety issues, they went unaddressed, you left, they responded formally. That's a story TWC can follow.

Freelance during a claim gets complicated - glad you got a straight answer from an actual agent.

It's self-employment income, so I report net profit for the week I did the work, not when I get paid. The agent was really clear about it.

TWC says you need to be able and available for suitable work, and they can ask to see your log at any time. Acceptable wage drops from 90% of your normal rate in the first eight weeks to 75% after that. The spirit of it is real applications, not just hitting a number.

OK so I shouldn't be logging applications for jobs I clearly couldn't do or wouldn't accept. Good to know.

Keep the log detailed - date, employer, position, how you applied. If TWC ever audits it you want it to hold up.

So transportation issues wouldn't count as good cause? I always assumed any work-related hardship would.

Transportation is actually listed as a personal reason by TWC, not a work-related one. It's a common misunderstanding - work-related means something about the job itself, not getting to and from it.

Wow, I definitely had that wrong. Thanks for the correction.

19 days feels close to where I am now. Trying to stay patient and just keep doing what I'm supposed to do.

That's the right mindset. The worst thing is to do nothing because you assume it won't work out.

That's exactly the kind of thing that would sit unresolved for weeks if you can't get a person on the phone.

Exactly - UBS showed nothing unusual on my end. The issue was invisible until I actually spoke to someone.

How do I know the appeal window hasn't started already? Like when does the clock start if I haven't gotten a determination yet?

The 14-day window starts from the date printed at the top of the determination letter when it's mailed. You haven't gotten that letter yet so the clock hasn't started.

And keep requesting payments through the whole appeal if it comes to that. TWC only pays weeks you requested on time - the appeal doesn't pause that.

Good to hear it went smoothly. I did the same thing yesterday.

Uploaded mine too after reading this thread. Feels better than just waiting.