Business Insider reports that some Amazon employees have noticed an increasing number of colleagues are leaving the company over its strict return-to-office mandate.
Amazon’s strict return-to-office policy is pushing more employees into quitting::undefined
Refuse and make them fire you if they care that much.
Wouldn’t this still impact one’s ability to collect unemployment? In some states at least, I believe there’s a distinction between employees fired with cause versus without cause, although I admit I’m no expert on this subject.
EDIT: This article states that unemployment kicks in if the employee lost their job through no fault of their own or quit for “good cause.”
This other article states that depending on the circumstances and the state you worked in, you may be able to collect unemployment if you are fired from your job. Whether you can collect unemployment depends on the circumstances of why your employment was terminated.
Good luck arguing for refusal to return to office as a “good cause!”
If it was part of the initial work agreement that it would be remote then almost certainly it would count.
A rapid shift in job responsibilities or expectations (such as commuting two hours a day vs. 0) can be considered as “Constructive dismissal”
Even if it wasn’t part of the original hiring agreement, if it’s been that way for years or you have direct emails stating it’s fully remote from now on you likely have a good case.
Think back to the pre-COVID days. If management told you that your office was closing, and that you now had to report to a different office an hour away, would you be so dismissive?
This is pretty well established as Constructive Dismissal - a material change in work conditions that makes continued employment unbearable. Depending on the details, this could be seen as a layoff (if they close the office in Texas and tell you there’s a job waiting for you in Florida, that counts as a layoff)
Wouldn’t this still impact one’s ability to collect unemployment? In some states at least, I believe there’s a distinction between employees fired with cause versus without cause, although I admit I’m no expert on this subject.
EDIT: This article states that unemployment kicks in if the employee lost their job through no fault of their own or quit for “good cause.”
This other article states that depending on the circumstances and the state you worked in, you may be able to collect unemployment if you are fired from your job. Whether you can collect unemployment depends on the circumstances of why your employment was terminated.
Good luck arguing for refusal to return to office as a “good cause!”
If it was part of the initial work agreement that it would be remote then almost certainly it would count.
A rapid shift in job responsibilities or expectations (such as commuting two hours a day vs. 0) can be considered as “Constructive dismissal”
Even if it wasn’t part of the original hiring agreement, if it’s been that way for years or you have direct emails stating it’s fully remote from now on you likely have a good case.
Think back to the pre-COVID days. If management told you that your office was closing, and that you now had to report to a different office an hour away, would you be so dismissive?
This is pretty well established as Constructive Dismissal - a material change in work conditions that makes continued employment unbearable. Depending on the details, this could be seen as a layoff (if they close the office in Texas and tell you there’s a job waiting for you in Florida, that counts as a layoff)