If I get fired for being late can I collect unemployment in Texas?

Used claimyr.com last month because I had to sort out my own claim after getting fired for attendance issues. Couldn't get through to TWC on my own for like two weeks straight. Claimyr handled the hold for me and connected me to a live agent once someone picked up — there's a demo at https://youtu.be/V-IMvH88P1U if you want to see how it works. The agent told me my specific situation was going to adjudication because my employer said I had three written warnings before the termination. That detail mattered a lot for how TWC looked at the whole thing.

TWC doesn't have an automatic disqualification list. Being fired doesn't mean you're out — it depends on whether your employer can show your lateness crossed into what TWC considers misconduct. Misconduct in TWC's world means things like breaking company policy, breaking the law, or just being unable to do the work when you actually could. Chronic tardiness after written warnings usually gets categorized as violating company policy, which can count as misconduct. But a few late arrivals with no documentation on the employer's side is a very different situation.

My cousin went through almost exactly this last year. Got fired from a distribution center for tardiness, filed with TWC, and actually got approved. The key thing in his case was that he had documentation that he'd requested a schedule change and the company denied it. TWC apparently factored that in when deciding whether the lateness rose to the level of misconduct. No promises for your situation but it's not an automatic denial.

FOUR YEARS at that company and they won't even adjust your start time by like an hour?? The system is so rigged. Even if TWC approves you they drag it out for weeks and meanwhile bills don't stop. File the second you're actually let go, not before, because the claim starts the Sunday of the week you apply and they cannot go back and pay earlier weeks.

Adjudication is just TWC's review process when there's a question about why you left or were let go. It doesn't mean you're disqualified, it means they haven't decided yet. During that whole waiting period, keep submitting your payment requests every two weeks on schedule — that's how TWC pays out the weeks once they do approve. Missing a payment request means you just don't get paid for that period even if you win the adjudication.

There's something worth knowing about how TWC classifies the reason for termination. If your employer codes it as a policy violation due to attendance, TWC will look at whether the policy was clear, whether you knew about it, and whether the discipline was consistent. If the company fired someone else for the same thing last year and handled it differently, that inconsistency can actually work in your favor during the adjudication.

Just to be clear for anyone reading this who might be confused — there's a difference between getting fired and quitting. If you quit because of the schedule situation before being fired, TWC treats that completely differently. Quitting usually means no benefits unless you had what they call good cause connected to the work itself. Getting fired puts you in a much better position to at least be reviewed.

Benefits wise — your weekly amount is based on your highest earning quarter in the base period divided by 25, and the max TWC pays is $619 a week for claims from October 2026 on. The base period for a claim you file right now would be roughly July 2025 through June 2026. So your four years of wages there count if they fall in that window.

Worth knowing about the waiting week — TWC holds back your first payable week. You don't lose it, but it only gets released after you've been paid twice your weekly amount AND you either go back to full-time work or use up all your benefits. If you end up going back to work, you have to request it yourself through UBS or Tele-Serv, it doesn't happen automatically.

My situation was a little different — I was let go last spring after some attendance issues tied to car trouble. Filed right away, went into adjudication for about five weeks. TWC sent me a determination letter eventually and I was approved. The whole thing came down to the fact that my employer couldn't show a consistent written policy that I had clearly violated. Keep copies of everything they've ever given you in writing about attendance expectations.

For anyone unsure about where to actually file — it's through Unemployment Benefits Services on TWC's site at https://apps.twc.texas.gov/UBS/security/logon.do or by calling the Tele-Center at 800-939-6631. Apply as soon as you're actually out of work. The UBS login uses the same credentials as WorkInTexas.com, and you'll get a one-time code every time you log in.

Speaking of work search — a lot of people don't realize how strict TWC is about this. You have to log every job contact, application, whatever counts as an activity. TWC can ask for your log at any time and if you can't produce it you're in trouble. Start that log from week one even before you know you're approved.

fired for being late sounds harsh but honestly if you had a legit reason and tried to get it fixed with management and they said no, that's a real argument that you weren't just blowing off the job. document everything you can remember right now while it's fresh, dates, conversations, who said what

My employer fought my claim pretty hard after I got fired last year. The appeal process exists for a reason — if TWC initially disqualifies you, you have 14 calendar days from the date on that determination letter to file an appeal in writing. You can do it right through UBS. The first level is a phone hearing with a Hearing Officer, and you get to present your side.

Does anyone know if transportation problems as a reason for being late have ever worked in someone's favor? Like is there any scenario where the reason for the tardiness matters to TWC or do they just look at whether you violated the attendance policy?

Called TWC this morning to ask about my own attendance-related termination situation. Used claimyr.com to get through since I'd been trying on my own for days with no luck. Got connected to an agent who walked me through what adjudication actually looks at in cases where the employee had warnings — turns out they really do read the employer's written response closely, so whatever your company submits shapes a lot.

Fourteen days to appeal sounds like a lot but it goes fast when you're stressed and looking for work at the same time. Set a reminder the day you get any determination letter. The mailing date at the top of the letter is what starts the clock, not when you actually receive it in the mail.

One more piece on the payment request process since it confused me when I was going through mine — payment requests are filed Sunday through Wednesday for that two-week period. If you miss that window you can still file Thursday through Saturday of that same week. Miss the whole week and that period is gone. Set up phone reminders so it doesn't slip.

The employer's 14-day response window to TWC's notice is something a lot of claimants don't think about. They file and then feel like nothing's happening but actually the clock is running on the employer side. After they respond, or after the window closes if they don't, TWC starts putting together the picture and adjudication gets underway.

Just want to flag something for anyone still worried about whether to file at all — there's no downside to filing. If you're denied you can appeal. The worst outcome is a denial you then fight. Not filing means no chance at all.

My sister used claimyr.com when she was going through a termination claim review last month — she needed to ask TWC specifically whether her employer had submitted their response yet. The agent was able to pull up her account and confirm it, which at least stopped her from just guessing and refreshing UBS every hour.