Unemployment benefit rejection? Get free advice!

Questioner

My application for unemployment benefits was rejected because I would not meet the 26-week requirement. This surprises me, because I have never not worked for 1 week! Now, I worked for 1 employer at the beginning of this year, and for 16 weeks for another employer. Do they sometimes only look at the number of weeks worked at your current employer? Or does that not matter? I am really pissed off, because the contract of all temporary workers in our entire team was terminated prematurely due to a reorganization. As a result, we will soon be standing on the doorstep with 40 people and because we are each other's competitors, the employment agency will never have room for all of us again so quickly. We heard last week that it will end for us at the end of October. So we have very little time to find something else. That is why I was hoping for benefits to be able to bridge the time until a new job financially. The fact that my application has now been rejected is causing a slight panic!!

Lawyer

It does indeed seem incorrect what the UWV did. If you have worked for 26 weeks in the last 36 weeks, you are entitled to unemployment benefits. It does not matter whether you have worked for one or more employers. If you have already received a rejection from the UWV, it is best to file an objection.

Lawyer

I agree with my colleague. If you want to object, I can help you, if you wish. In that case, you can contact me directly and in any case send copies of the employment contracts, as well as the letters you received from the UWV.

Questioner

Thanks for the responses! I have contacted the UWV in any case, I am now waiting for an explanation as to why they rejected my application. But what I do wonder, do you really have to have worked for 26 weeks at your current job, from which your dismissal follows, in order to qualify for unemployment benefits? I worked for employer A at the beginning of this year, and then resigned because I had found a new job that was a better fit for my education. At employer B I am currently working for 16 weeks, and unfortunately my contract is now ending prematurely. Are they basing their rejection on my current 16 weeks of work?

Lawyer

You indicate that your contract is being terminated prematurely. This may be the reason that you are not receiving unemployment benefits because the agreement may not have been terminated legally and then you may have to approach your employer to continue paying your salary.

Questioner

I just called the UWV and it seems that they look at the number of weeks worked at your current job from which your dismissal follows......yeah and I've only been working there for 16 weeks. Nicely arranged here in the Netherlands, huh :-)

Lawyer

In that case I advise you to file an objection because this position of the UWV is not correct. You must have worked for 26 weeks in employment, regardless of which employer.

Lawyer

You indicate that you yourself resigned from your previous job. If you resign from a job and then sign a contract for less than 6 months (26 weeks) and your employment contract ends, then you may be culpably unemployed and that is the reason why you do not receive unemployment benefits. The UWV then reasons that you are exchanging a secure contract for an insecure contract, which increases the risk of unemployment. In your case, it is therefore important to know whether your new contract was signed for 6 months or longer or whether you can demonstrate that the employment agency needed you for longer than 6 months. If this is the case, then it is unfair that your unemployment benefit has been refused. If it cannot be demonstrated that the employment agency needed you for 6 months or longer, then the UWV's reasoning is probably correct. Of course, it is always useful to defend yourself.