Ariz. Admin. Code § 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.)
Notes
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