Terminating the Employment Relationship

Development Department (“EDD”) will presume that the separation was not based on misconduct. Moreover, when an employee voluntarily resigns from employment, EDD will also presume that the employee left for good cause. The presumption that the employee left for good cause is a rebuttable presumption. Thus, the employer will have an opportunity to show otherwise. 384 The Unemployment Insurance Code is construed liberally, however, in favor of the employee. 385 Unemployment Insurance Code section 1089-1 requires employers to provide certain notices to the employee at the time of separation from employment, similar to COBRA notification discussed below. (22 C.C.R. section 1089-1 386 .) Specifically, section 1089-1 provides that when an employer discharges, lays off, or places an employee on leave of absence, the employer shall give to the employee the following notices: (1) Written notice of his or her unemployment insurance benefit rights by providing the pamphlet identified in Unemployment section 1089-1(b)(3). The notice of unemployment insurance benefit rights shall be given no later than the effective date of the action; and (2) Written notice regarding the change in the employee's status. The notice of change of status shall be given no later than the effective date of the action and shall contain at a minimum: (A) the name of the employer; (B) the name of the employee; (C) the social security account number of the employee; (D) whether the action was a discharge, a layoff, a leave of absence, or a change in status from employee to independent contractor; and (E) the date of the action.

1. V OLUNTARILY L EAVING W ORK W ITHOUT G OOD C AUSE

In order to determine whether or not the employee voluntarily resigned from employment, the EDD determines the moving party in the resignation.

If the employee left employment while work was available, the EDD will presume that the employee left voluntarily. On the other hand, if the employer did not permit the employee to work while work was available, then the employer was the moving party and the resignation was not voluntary. 387 Good cause for leaving work occurs when an employee leaves his/her employment for a compelling reason and a reasonable person in similar circumstances would have felt so compelled. 388 This determination is analyzed on a case-by-case basis.

2. O THER F ORMS OF G OOD C AUSE F OR L EAVING W ORK

a. Leaving Work Due to Lack of Equal Employment Opportunity An employee is considered to have left work with good cause if the employer deprived the employee of equal employment opportunities because of that person’s race, color, religious creed, sex, national origin, ancestry or physical handicap. 389

Terminating the Employment Relationship ©2019 (s) Liebert Cassidy Whitmore 125