What Are the Health Reasons for Which You Can Collect Unemployment Insurance?

Most people are not eligible for unemployment if they quit their jobs. In some cases, however, you may still be eligible if you quit for health reasons. State laws vary, so check with your state's unemployment office to find out the rules where you live. In general, you are eligible for unemployment if your employer knew your work environment was negatively affecting your health and did not do anything about it.

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Unhealthy Job Conditions

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If your job contributes to health problems and your employer does not correct the issue once you notify him of it, you may qualify for unemployment benefits if you quit. For example, if you have nut allergies and have symptoms if you are near nuts and your employer does not require common areas to be nut-free, you can collect unemployment if you quit your job in most states. You must provide a doctor's note stating that you had to quit the job for health reasons.

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Mental Health Issues

If you have a documented mental health issue such as a diagnosis of autism, your employer must provide accommodations so that you can do your job. If your employer refuses to provide accommodations or is unable to provide sufficient accommodations for you to do your job, you can receive unemployment if you quit. Depending on circumstances, you may also be able to sue the employer for discriminating against disabled employees.

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Communications Requirement

You cannot quit your job as soon as a health issue arises. You must discuss the issue with your employer and give her a chance to accommodate your health issue. For example, if you are allergic to nuts or perfume, your employer can ban these items or require people who use them to work in a separate area to try to alleviate the situation. You also must attempt to take advantage of any accommodations the employer offers before concluding that you cannot work due to health concerns.

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Family Members' Health

You may be able to get unemployment if you quit your job to take care of a spouse or child's chronic health concerns. However, you usually cannot get unemployment for this reason if you are unable to work at all due to your family member's health issues. You must be able to work at least some of the time, even if you have to work at odd hours or only work part time.

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