Eligibility when you refuse work

If the Department of Labor gets a report that you refused an employment offer or job referral, we will hold a hearing to decide whether you should continue receiving unemployment benefits. We'll determine whether you had "sufficient cause" to refuse the offer or referral by considering:

• Whether the job is in your usual occupation
• The job’s match to your prior training, experience, and skills
• The job’s distance from your home
• Your previous wage level
• How long you have been unemployed
• If the job poses any unreasonable risks to your health, safety, or morals
• If the wages, hours, and working conditions are much less than similar work
• Other factors such as your present employment, an illness or disability, domestic responsibilities, confinement, or participation in training approved by the Department of Labor

If you refused suitable work without a good reason, you will stop receiving unemployment benefits that week. To re-qualify for benefits, you must return to work and earn at least six times one week’s benefit rate.