Ariz. Admin. Code § 6-3-52150

Current through Register Vol. 30, No. 25, June 21, 2024

Section R6-3-52150 - Distance to Work (able and Available 150)

A. General (Able and Available 150.05)

1. There is a presumption of unavailability if an individual resides in a community in which there is no type of work existent for which he is qualified, and he is unable to seek and accept work in other communities in which such work does exist. This presumption can be overcome by a showing that the individual has an attachment to the community in which he is residing and that other suitable work exists. In arriving at a determination of this nature it is necessary to identify the type or types of work which the individual might reasonably be able to do and establish that such work does exist. If such work does exist, a period of adjustment is permitted before the claimant is expected to seek work elsewhere. The length of the adjustment period will depend on the length and nature of the claimant's attachment to the community and his prospects of securing other related work. In establishing the existence or lack of existence of such work it is essential to consider the total number of jobs of such classifications rather than the number of job openings or job orders.

2. Regardless of the claimant's attachment to the community, he should be held available if some work exists in the community in which he resides and there is a reasonable expectancy of his obtaining such work.

B. In transit (Able and Available 150.1)

1. When an individual moves from locality to locality, it is important to determine whether the individual's activities are directed toward efforts to obtain work or are directed to personal efforts inconsistent with his attachment to the labor market.

2. A claimant who is absent from his home or the community in which he most recently performed work, without additional evidence as to the reason for his absence, is presumed unavailable for work.

3. When the circumstances show that the claimant's purpose in traveling was to obtain employment and it was reasonable for him to believe that his opportunities for employment would be improved by the travel, he may be considered available for work during the period in which he was in transit.

C. Removal from locality (Able and Available 150.15)

1. Generally, a claimant must be in a position to accept work of a type for which he is qualified at a place where that type (or types) of work is done. The mere fact that a claimant goes or moves from one locality to another is not of itself a basis for holding him unavailable for work. The main factors to consider in such a case are:

a. What are his work opportunities in the new locality?

b. Does he actually want work in the new locality?

c. Does his reason for leaving the old locality or leaving employment in the former locality still exist and, if so, does this unduly restrict his availability for work?

2. A claimant who goes to a new locality generally will be presumed available for work if:

a. The labor force conditions there afford him some work opportunities;

b. He has registered for work;

c. He is seeking work in the manner ordinarily followed by persons seeking work there; and

d. There are no undue restrictions on his employability.

3. However, if the claimant left employment to go to the new locality or if his move was necessitated by personal or domestic circumstances, a more intensive inquiry into the reason surrounding the move must be made since the reason for leaving may restrict the individual's availability in the new location.

4. If the individual left work in the old locality because of dissatisfaction with wages or some other working condition, the same or other objectionable working conditions may exist in the new locality. Thus, he may be restricting his employability in the new locality to such an extent that he is not considered available for work.

5. If he left the locality because of his own health or illness or that of a member of his family, his ability to work or availability may be restricted in the new locality by the same circumstances, e.g., new climate does not improve health enough to enable him to work; member of family requires care which the claimant must give because of inability or unwillingness to obtain someone else to care for the family member.

6. Various other factors may have a bearing as to whether a claimant is available for work in a new locality. Among these are:

a. The anticipated permanency of his stay;

b. His reasons for going there if he intended to remain only a temporary period;

c. The nature of the restrictions upon his employability;

d. His reasons for anticipating job opportunities in the new community;

e. His reasons for refusing work in other localities;

f. His willingness to relax restrictions as to other types of work he might accept after a reasonable period of time.

7. If the community is so small that there is a question as to whether any work opportunities exist, the adjudicator must evaluate the work opportunities in the locality and the number of vacancies which would normally occur in the occupations for which the claimant is qualified and will accept.

D. Transportation and travel (Able and Available 150.2)

1. The availability of a worker whose employment has terminated because he lacked transportation to and from the work he had been performing is questionable. This is particularly so when the loss of transportation appears to largely preclude his access to the work opportunities which characterize the specific labor force locality in which he seeks work.

2. "Availability for work" generally presupposes that the individual is accessible to suitable work opportunities which the particular community ordinarily supplies. Generally, if the claimant cannot accept the work opportunities that exist because of lack of transportation, he is not deemed employable and therefore, is unavailable for work; however, the fact that he may lack transportation to any specific employment does not require this result. The adjudicator shall evaluate the work opportunities that do exist not only as to number but as to the amount of attrition which would normally occur in the types of positions that exist in the area and the claimant's accessibility to such work opportunities.

3. When job offers are refused because of the distance, the issue of availability may enter into the decision because of transportation restrictions. Some points to be considered are:

a. The transportation facilities available to the claimant;

b. If dependent on public transportation, the proximity, routes and schedules are to be reviewed for the claimant's accessibility to adequate job opportunities;

c. If dependent on a relative or neighbor for transportation, the name and location of such relative or neighbor, the location of such job and the time the relative or neighbor leaves for and returns from work should be examined for the practicality of reliance on such individual for transportation.

d. The cost of transportation;

e. The transportation facilities the claimant had on his last job;

f. If no transportation is available to the main employment centers, whether he reduced his opportunity for reasonable expectancy of employment.

4. A claimant who does not have public transportation available to him must have transportation previously arranged so that he would be immediately able to commute to suitable work to which he might be referred.

5. A claimant without transportation from his residence to the major labor market centers during those hours in which the majority of the jobs for which he is reasonably fitted are performed generally will be held to be unavailable for work.

6. A claimant who refuses to travel a reasonable commuting distance substantially reducing his opportunities for employment is not available for work unless there is a reasonable expectancy of his obtaining work in the restricted locality. "Beyond reasonable commuting distance" is generally:

a. More than 20 miles from the claimant's residence to place of employment, or

b. More than one hour elapsed commuting time one way, or

c. Commuting expense equal to 15% or more of a claimant's gross wage. (The Department accepts the mileage allowance paid state of Arizona employees for use of their private vehicles for official travel as the standard for determining cost of travel to the claimant.)

Ariz. Admin. Code § R6-3-52150

Former rule number - Able and Available 150. - 150.2. Former rule repealed, new Section R6-3-52150 adopted effective January 24, 1977 (Supp. 77-1). Amended subsection (A), paragraph (1) and subsection (D), paragraphs (3) and (6) (Supp. 83-4).