Can I receive unemployment if I was fired or suspended?

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Unemployment eligibility when you're fired

People typically don't receive unemployment benefits if their former employer proves they were fired or suspended for any of the following reasons: 

  • Committed willful misconduct:
    • You behaved improperly on the job on purpose
    • You broke a reasonable, uniformly enforced rule (unless it was because of your incompetence)
    • You were absent from work without telling the employer or without a good reason three separate times within a 12-month period
  • Committed a felony crime while working
  • Committed larceny:
    • You stole property or services from your employer worth more than $25
    • You stole cash of any value from your employer
  • Participated in an illegal strike against your employer
  • Were sentenced to a prison term of 30 days or longer and began serving that sentence
  • Were disqualified under state or federal law from performing the work you were hired for as a result of a drug or alcohol testing program.

Eligibility