Should I respond to this Unemployment notice for an employee who was fired?

You got a letter from the state saying that Employee McAnnoying filed an unemployment claim. You fired their ass two weeks ago. The letter says, “If you would like to dispute this claim...”

Don’t do it.

A few times a year someone sends me one of these letters asking if there’s anything they should do. It usually comes up when the person quit, “wasn’t working out,” or left so long ago that they must have lost another job in between.

In most cases, all the letter is asking is whether Employee McAnnoying reported their wages properly so the state can calculate their payments. If the person left a long time ago, you’re only getting the letter because their time at your company is part of the look-back window for calculating payments.

If the wages are correct, there’s nothing you need to do. 

Unless you fired them for something super unethical or illegal (like sexual harassment, fraud, violence, or microwaving cabbage soup), there’s no need to report it. Let the state make the call.

It’s not illegal to be:

→ Bad at your job

→ Mad at your boss

→ Unlikeable

→ Unhappy

If they left on contentious terms, interfering with their unemployment is only going to make matters worse. Let it go. Let the state make the call. 

If they quit, they’ll have to make a case for why quitting was the only option. They may not win anyway. Not your problem.

If they quit for irreconcilable differences, collecting unemployment will help them move on. Let them.

“But it says that we could have to pay.”

Depending on the state, the wording might seem like your company has to pay the unemployment payments. 

If you’ve been withholding payroll taxes properly, you already did. Through taxes.

If you have a lot of claims in a year (like you have a big layoff), the state may raise your tax rate by a fraction of a percent next year. If this applies to you, you have bigger problems than Employee McAnnoying. Contesting unemployment claims isn’t a good use of your time.

So unless the person did something nefarious, check the reported wages and let it go. You have better things to do than mess with someone’s money when they’re down.

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