Having to move area & leave job... can I claim?

anewloginapparently

Hi,

I'm currently working away from home in full-time work on a seasonal contract that expires at the end of March.

Unfortunetely I've been given notice that I need to vacate where I'm living within 4 weeks so I'm facing having to move back home then as I've not been able to find any temporary lodgings for the remaining 7 weeks of my contract (and can't afford b&b accomodation).

I've got a few irons in the fire for other jobs back home but it'll take a while before I can start any due to needing CRB clearence etc in my line of work.

So what I'm asking I guess is in the intevening period would I be able to claim job seekers allowance?

I guess the best case scenario is I could straight away while the middle ground is I would from the original expiry date of my contract and the worst is that I wouldn't be able to for 26 weeks from the date of claiming...

Any ideas?

It's definitely going to be a bit impractical for me to get to work for those last 7 weeks from 130 miles away.

karenx

jsa is for those looking for full time employment, if you leave your job you could be sanctioned for up to 26 weeks.

Voyager2002

The OP does have a pretty compelling reason for leaving his job. However, as #2 shows, some people might not regard it as acceptable and if a JSA decision-maker thinks like that, there might be problems.

I strongly suggest that you let your employer know about the problem, and ask if they can help at all (even simply by putting up a notice in the workplace asking if anyone has a spare room to let over the next few weeks). And surely you should be able to find a room somewhere: the requirements for six-month minimum contracts and so forth only apply to self-contained flats and houses, not to rooms in someone else's home.

Again, seek help in the Housing board: if you live in a self-contained place then the landlord is normally obliged to give you two month's notice, not just four weeks.

dookar

karenx wrote: »

jsa is for those looking for full time employment, if you leave your job you could be sanctioned for up to 26 weeks.

up to seven weeks.

Voyager2002 wrote: »

The OP does have a pretty compelling reason for leaving his job. However, as #2 shows, some people might not regard it as acceptable and if a JSA decision-maker thinks like that, there might be problems.
.

Unfortunately, this does appear to be a situation where the DM could have a different view.

The situation described does not, in itself, offer jus cause. I think a DM would want to know what steps you have taken to a) find new accommadation near to your work and b) find employment near to 'home' before that decision is made.

But bear in mind, OP, the maximum sanction you can receive is seven weeks and the DM must take into account all informaion you provide, just from what you've given on here I'd imagine you'd get 4-5 maximum, add in the bits mentioned aboveand it would be negligable.

All imo

Fran

Are there any YHA or other hostels nearby? You can get private rooms in some (most?).

anewloginapparently

dookar wrote: »

up to seven weeks.

Does this mean that my mid-way analysis is the most likely and that I'd only be able not to claim for the 7 weeks my contract would've lasted at worst and not be penalised for 26 weeks for leaving work "voluntarily"... I might be able to live with that off of savings if that was the worst case scenario.

Thanks for the help of others too (except poster #2!), I've asked around work to see if anyone has a room spare but it's only a small employer and none of my colleagues has been able to help so far. Had a look at staying in a B&B or hostel but it's going to cost me the best part of £20 a night which is more than half my wages so not terribly appealing!

Ah well I'll get there in there end.

Cheers for your help.

dookar

anewloginapparently wrote: »

Does this mean that my mid-way analysis is the most likely and that I'd only be able not to claim for the 7 weeks my contract would've lasted at worst and not be penalised for 26 weeks for leaving work "voluntarily"

Yes. 26 weeks is the maximum sanction the law allows, but a sanction cannot be for a period longer than the employment would have lasted - in this case 7 weeks. There is no way to determine how long the sanction will be (up to the seven weeks) so you should really claim as soon as you become unemployed. But, as I say, it's not a give that you will receive a sanction anyway

anewloginapparently

dookar wrote: »

Yes. 26 weeks is the maximum sanction the law allows, but a sanction cannot be for a period longer than the employment would have lasted - in this case 7 weeks. There is no way to determine how long the sanction will be (up to the seven weeks) so you should really claim as soon as you become unemployed. But, as I say, it's not a give that you will receive a sanction anyway

Thanks Dookar, that is about as good a news as I expected to hear so am am very greatful for that. Cheers.

~_SKY_~

We had this trouble when my boyfriend moved up here to be with me, he had a good job, had never had time off etc, had looked for a job here but then he decided to just come up and put all his efforts into looking for a job. He spent a week looking and then went onto JSA (as adviced to by the job centre) and he claimed for a month or so then got a letter saying that his claim was being looked at again, as he had left his last job of his own accord, they were basically going to stop his JSA, but luckily he got a good job and was able to cancel the claim anyway.

good luck