Voluntary Termination of Employment

As specified in GA policy GA 217, an applicant who voluntarily terminates employment, (quits a job), without “good cause,” shall be ineligible for aid for 30 days, from the date of termination.

Good Cause

“Good cause,” as used herein, exists when:

The wage paid is less that the state minimum hourly wage if the job was within the state of California; or less than the federal minimum hourly wage if the job was outside the state of California.
The employment violated applicable health and safety laws and regulations.
The hours of work required exceed those customary to the occupation.
The employment position was in excess of the individual’s mental or physical capacity.
The individual was ill or was required to care for an ill member of the immediate family and no other care arrangements were feasible.
The individual was unable to get to, or return from, the place of employment. Examples:
- The applicant must spend more than 2 hours per day commuting.
- The distance to the place of employment prohibits walking, and there is no public or private transportation available to get the person to the job site.
There were other compelling reasons which justified termination. Examples:
- Discrimination by the employer.
- Unreasonable work demands or conditions, such as not being paid on schedule.
- The individual is experiencing a family crisis due to the death of a spouse.
- The individual is a past or present victim of domestic violence and going to work represents a risk.

Note: Individuals may be provided with information on the Santa Clara County Domestic Violence Crisis Line (408) 279-2962.

Important: Federal, state, or local government employees, who have been dismissed from their jobs because of participation in a strike against the government entity involved, do not have good cause.

Cause Determination

A cause determination must be completed by the EW, anytime an applicant/recipient quits a job. If good cause exists, the application will not be denied.

Termination for Cause

Persons who cause their own termination, will be deemed to have voluntarily quit their job. “Termination for cause” reasons include, but are NOT limited to:

Intoxication or drug use on the job.
Misconduct, such as fighting.
Making willful false statements, or withholding facts.
Participation in a trade dispute.
Unexcused absences.

Exemptions

The following persons are exempt from the voluntary quit cause determination:

Persons who quit their most recent job more than 30 days before application.
Persons terminating a self-employment enterprise.

Verification

Verification of good cause for voluntarily quitting a job, should be requested only if the information provided is questionable. If the applicant and EW are unable to obtain verification, the applicant should not be denied access to the program.

Employer Statement

If the applicant was employed within six months prior to application, the EW must require that a “Request for Information From Employer” (SCD 549) be completed by the former employer. If the termination was within 30 days of the application, action on the application must be withheld for at least 10 working days, pending the return of the SCD 549 from the former employer.

Couples — Intake

At the point of intake, if either spouse, of a legally married couple, voluntarily quits a job WITHOUT good cause within 30 days of the application date; the couple will be ineligible for GA for 30 days, from the date of the job termination.

Couples — Continuing

If both of the legally married spouses are employable, and either one quits a job WITHOUT good cause, both MUST be discontinued and sanctioned.

When the couple includes both an employable spouse, and an unemployable spouse, and the employable spouse voluntarily quits a job WITHOUT “good cause,” only the employable spouse will be discontinued and sanctioned. The unemployable spouse is still eligible.

If an unemployable spouse voluntarily quits a job, without “good cause,” the recipient must have their employability status reevaluated.