Unemployment Benefits

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In Matter of Vega (Postmates Inc. – Commissioner of Labor), 2020 NY Slip Op 02094 (NY Ct. App. March 26, 2020), the New York Court of Appeals – which, for non-NY practitioners, is our highest state-level appellate court – held that Postmates couriers are “employees” for purposes of unemployment benefits. This case arises from a…

Read More Court of Appeals: Postmates Couriers Are “Employees” For Purposes of Unemployment Insurance
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In Matter of Colon (Staffing Solutions Org. LLC – Commissioner of Labor), No. 528844, 2020 N.Y. Slip Op. 00656, 2020 WL 476389 (N.Y.A.D. 3 Dept., Jan. 30, 2020), the court upheld the denial of unemployment benefits to claimant, who resigned from her employment citing, among other things, a hostile work environment. The Department of Labor…

Read More Unemployment Benefit Denial Upheld, Notwithstanding Alleged Hostile Work Environment
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In Matter of Thuy Pham (Sperber, Denenberg & Kahan, PC–Commissioner of Labor), 2019 NY Slip Op 08907 (App. Div. 3d Dept. Dec. 12, 2019), the court upheld the dismissal of the claimant’s claim for unemployment benefits, finding that she did not voluntarily leave with “good cause.” Claimant – an attorney and associate at a law…

Read More Unemployment Denial Upheld; Claimant Did Not Voluntarily Leave With “Good Cause”
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In Matter of Rohde (Goshen Chamber of Commerce, Inc.–Commissioner of Labor), 2019 NY Slip Op 06681 (App. Div. 3d Dept. Sept. 19, 2019), the court affirmed the denial of unemployment benefits, on the ground that the claimant did not establish “good cause” for resigning. Here are the facts, as summarized by the court: Claimant, an…

Read More Resignation Without Good Cause, Notwithstanding Harassment & Hostile Work Environment Allegations, Justified Denial of Unemployment Benefits, Court Holds
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In In re Cohen, No. 522119, 2017 WL 3176221, at *1 (N.Y. App. Div. July 27, 2017), the Appellate Division upheld the Unemployment Insurance Appeal Board’s (UIAB) adoption of an Administrative Law Judge’s finding that the claimant (a paralegal) was entitled to unemployment insurance benefits where she voluntarily left her employment in light of a…

Read More Unemployment Benefits Upheld Where Voluntary Departure Was Prompted by a “Hostile Work Environment”
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In Matter of Davis, No. 521825, 2017 NY Slip Op 01920, 2017 WL 1013161 (N.Y. App. Div. 3d Dept. Mar. 16, 2017), the court affirmed an Unemployment Insurance Appeal Board determination that the claimant was disqualified from receiving unemployment insurance benefits because she voluntarily left her employment without good cause. The court summarized the facts/procedure…

Read More Unemployment Benefit Denial to Resigning Employee Affirmed, Notwithstanding Hostile Work Environment Allegation
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In Matter of Mitchell (Nation Co. Ltd. Partners – Commissioner of Labor), 2016 NY Slip Op 08923 (App. Div. 3d Dept. Dec. 29, 2016), the court reversed a Board determination finding that Gregory A. Mitchell, a blogger for The Nation, was an “employee” and thus entitled to unemployment insurance benefits following the non-renewal of his contract in…

Read More Blogger Was Not An “Employee” of The Nation; Unemployment Benefits Denied
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An employee who voluntarily leaves a job “without good cause” is not entitled to unemployment insurance benefits. New York Labor Law § 593. But what amounts to “good cause”? The case law teaches that that is a fact-specific determination. In Matter of Labbate, 2016 NY Slip Op 02898 (App. Div. 3d Dept. April 14, 2016), the…

Read More Sexual Harassment Was “Good Cause” to Leave Job; Unemployment Benefits Upheld
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In Derrick v. American Intl. Group, Inc. (App. Div. 1st Dept. March 19, 2015), the Appellate Division, First Department reversed the lower court’s order granting defendants’ motion to dismiss plaintiff’s complaint and denying plaintiff’s motion to amend her complaint. In this case, plaintiff asserts claims for race, national origin, and gender discrimination and harassment. Citing NY…

Read More Adverse Unemployment Decision Does Not Preclude Discrimination Claims, Court Holds
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A recent Third Department decision, In the Matter of Sullivan v. Brookville Center for Children’s Services, affirmed a decision to award unemployment benefits to an employee who was terminated due to alleged disqualifying conduct, namely, posting on using social media during work hours. The court held: The question of whether a claimant engaged in actions…

Read More Violation of Company’s Social Media Policy Did Not Disqualify Worker From Receiving Unemployment Benefits
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