EMPLOYMENT SECURITY DEPARTMENT

(1) If you leave work because of a disability you must notify your employer about your disabling condition before the date you leave work or begin a leave of absence. Notice to the employer shall include any known restrictions on the type or hours of work you may perform.

(2) Any restrictions on the type or hours of work you may perform must be supported by a physician's statement or by the terms of a collective bargaining agreement or individual hiring contract.

(3) Nothing in unemployment insurance law requires your employer to offer you alternative suitable work when you have a disability, or modify your duties so that you can perform your current job. However, any offer from your employer of other suitable work must be made prior to the date you leave work or begin a leave of absence. You are not required to request alternative work from your employer to be found available for work.

(4) If your employer offers you alternative work or otherwise offers to accommodate your disability, you must demonstrate good cause to refuse the offer. This may include, but is not limited to, information from your physician that the accommodation offered by your employer was inadequate to reasonably accommodate your medical condition, or information demonstrating that the alternative work offered you by your employer was not suitable.

(5) If you refuse an offer of work from any employer after your job separation or after beginning a leave of absence, the department will determine whether you refused an offer of suitable work as provided in RCW 50.20.080.

(6) If you are on a leave of absence due to your disability, you must promptly request reemployment from your employer when you are again able to return to work.

(7) This section also applies to individuals on a leave of absence because of a pregnancy-related disability.

(8) ((For claims with an effective date of January 4, 2004, or later,)) In addition to the requirements of this section you are not eligible for unemployment benefits unless you terminate your employment and are not entitled to be reinstated to the same or similar position.

(1) Benefits may be denied under RCW 50.20.050 for voluntarily leaving work, RCW 50.20.060 for being discharged for misconduct, and RCW 50.20.080 for refusing an offer of suitable work or job referral. The denial of benefits will continue indefinitely until you show that:

(a) At least seven calendar weeks have elapsed following the week the act occurred that resulted in the denial of benefits; and

(b) You have obtained bona fide work and earned wages of at least seven times your suspended weekly benefit amount. The wages earned must be in employment that is covered by Title 50 RCW or the comparable laws of another state or the federal government.

(2) ((For claims with an effective date of January 4, 2004, or later,)) Benefits may be denied under RCW 50.20.066 for being discharged for misconduct or gross misconduct. The denial of benefits will continue indefinitely until you show that:

(a) At least ten calendar weeks have elapsed following the week the act occurred that resulted in the denial of benefits; and

(b) You have obtained bona fide work and earned wages of at least ten times your suspended weekly benefit amount. The wages earned must be in employment that is covered by Title 50 RCW or the comparable laws of another state or the federal government.

(1) Any military transfer is considered mandatory if your spouse or domestic partner receives orders from the military to relocate to a new duty station, regardless of whether the transfer is temporary or permanent.

(2) You may show good cause to quit work if you relocate for your spouse or domestic partner's employment that was due to a mandatory military transfer if:

(a) Your spouse or domestic partner's new duty station is outside your existing labor market((. For claims with an effective date prior to July 2, 2006, the new duty station must be in Washington or another state (including the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands) that allows benefits to individuals who quit work to accompany their military spouse)); and

(b) You continued to work for your previous employer for as long as was reasonable prior to the move.

(3) For purposes of this section, the term "military" includes the following: U.S. Navy, U.S. Army, U.S. Air Force, U.S. Marine Corps, U.S. Coast Guard, activated reserve members of any of these service branches, activated members of the National Guard, commissioned officers of the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration, and commissioned officers of the regular or reserve corps of the U.S. Public Health Service.

(4) Good cause for quitting work is not established under this section if:

(a) You quit work to return to your home of record or to another location rather than accompanying your spouse or domestic partner to a new duty location; or

(b) Your spouse or domestic partner leaves military service and you elect to relocate to your home of record or elsewhere.

(1) ((Effective date. RCW 50.20.050 (2)(b)(xi) and this section apply to job separations that occur on or after June 12, 2008.

(2))) Application. This section applies only if you quit work to enter into related/supplemental (classroom) instruction that is part of an apprenticeship program. If you quit work to begin employment for an employer who is a party to an apprenticeship agreement, the department will review the separation under RCW 50.20.050 (2)(b)(i) and WAC 192-150-050 to determine if you left work to accept a bona fide job offer.

(((3))) (2) Definitions. For purposes of this chapter:

(a) "To enter" means to begin participation in the apprenticeship program.

(i) The term "to enter" includes:

(A) Apprentices who accept temporary work with an employer who is not a party to the apprenticeship agreement and quit work to reenter training.

(B) Apprentices who quit work for a participating employer to enter a different apprenticeship program.

(ii) The term "to enter" does not include:

(A) Claimants applying for an apprenticeship program who at the time of quitting work are not enrolled in apprenticeship or preapprenticeship training. Their eligibility for benefits will be reviewed under RCW 50.20.050(2).

(B) Current apprentices who temporarily stop work for a participating employer to attend related/supplemental instruction that is a required component of their apprenticeship agreement. Claimants in this situation are considered to be on temporary layoff from work. Their eligibility for commissioner approved training will be reviewed under WAC 192-200-020(3).

(b) "Active participation" means attending classes, engaging in other activities that are part of the related/supplemental instruction, and working or seeking work in accordance with the apprenticeship agreement.

(c) The terms "apprentice," "apprenticeship agreement," "apprenticeship program," "approved," and "related/supplemental instruction" have the meanings described in WAC 296-05-003.

(((4))) (3) Establishing good cause. If you quit work to enter an apprenticeship program, you will have good cause within the meaning of RCW 50.20.050 (2)(b)(xi) if you satisfactorily demonstrate that:

(a) You have been accepted into and are entering an apprenticeship program approved by the Washington state apprenticeship training council;

(b) Prior to leaving work, you had a confirmed start date for related/supplemental instruction; and

(c) You continued in your employment for as long as was reasonably consistent with whatever arrangements were necessary to begin the related/supplemental instruction. In any event, you will not be eligible for benefits until the week prior to the week the related/supplemental instruction begins.

(1) ((Effective date. RCW 50.20.050(3) and this section apply to job separations that occur on or after July 26, 2009.

(2))) Definitions. For purposes of this section:

(a) "Part-time work" means fewer than 35 hours of work per week.

(b) "Full-time work" means work of 35 or more hours per week.

(((3))) (2) If you are simultaneously employed in a part-time job and a full-time job, you will not be denied benefits for quitting the part-time job under the following circumstances:

(a) You quit the part-time job before losing your full-time job;

(b) You did not know in advance that your full-time job would be ending; and

(c) You are eligible for benefits based on the separation from your full-time job.

(((4))) (3) If you are denied benefits under RCW 50.20.050(3), the period of denial is the same as that under RCW 50.20.050 (2)(a). This means you will be denied for a period of seven weeks and until you earn at least seven times your weekly benefit amount in covered employment.

(((5))) (4) Examples. The following are examples only and do not mean that the department would rule the same in similar situations.

(a) You quit a part-time job two weeks before being laid off from your full-time job. Benefits are allowed because you meet the criteria of subsection (((3))) (2) of this section.

(b) You quit a part-time job before the hours at your full-time job were reduced. Benefits are allowed because you meet the criteria of subsection (((3))) (2) of this section.

(c) You quit a part-time job two weeks before the end of a temporary full-time job. You had prior knowledge that the full-time job was ending. Benefits would be denied unless you had good cause for quitting the part-time job under RCW 50.20.050(2).

(d) You quit a part-time job two weeks before being discharged from the full-time job.

(i) If the separation from the full-time job was for misconduct, benefits would be denied for quitting the part-time job because you are not eligible for benefits based on the separation from the full-time job.

(ii) If the separation from the full-time job was not misconduct, benefits would be allowed because you meet the criteria of subsection (3).

(e) You quit the part-time job and the full-time job on the same day. The department will determine if you had good cause to quit both jobs under RCW 50.20.050(2).

(f) You quit a part-time job but are still employed full-time at your other job. The department will determine if you had good cause to quit under RCW 50.20.050(2).