Leave of Absence

• A leave of absence is a period of time in which a person retains employee status but does not show up at work. The leave may be paid in certain situations, such as for jury duty or bereavement. Unpaid leave of absences can be due to an employee request, an investigation into employee misconduct, health problems or active duty in the military. There is also a leave of absence in lieu of layoff in which an employee voluntarily takes an unpaid leave while business is slow with the understanding that when business picks up he will be brought back to work.
  
  

Unemployment

• The purpose of the unemployment program is to provide monetary benefits to those workers who are not employed through a fault of their own. This means the worker was not responsible for the job loss, such as an involuntary layoff, reduced work hours or plant closure. Unemployment payments issued every two weeks and completion of a claim form indicating job contacts must be sent into the office every two weeks to continue receiving benefits.
  
  

Eligibility

• There are several eligibility requirements prior to receiving benefits. A two-prong test establishes that an applicant meets both the employment and financial aspects. The financial aspect requires that an applicant's employment was within the base period and that sufficient wages were earned during the period. The employment aspect requires the worker to be physically able to work, actively seeking employment and that the applicant can accept work immediately if a position is found.
  
  

Filing and Receipt of Benefits

• Although you can always file for unemployment benefits, even when on a leave of absence, the real question is whether you will receive benefits. The answer is no, if you are on a paid LOA as the program does not provide double payment. If you are on an unpaid LOA due to your own request, the answer is no because unemployment requires that severance is through no fault of your own. An LOA due to health reasons make you ineligible as you are not able to work. Employee misconduct would require a case-by-case determination by the unemployment office. However, a leave of absence in lieu of layoff may qualify if you are willing and able to work. This would also require a determination by the unemployment office.