As an applicant for unemployment benefits in Ohio, meeting the eligibility requirements is essential not only when you first file your claim but also each week you certify for benefits. You must be both "able to work" and "available for suitable work" during each week claimed. While the "able to work" requirement focuses on your physical capacity, the "available for suitable work" requirement deals with your readiness, willingness, and accessibility to the job market.

This requirement is often more complex than the "able to work" standard, as it involves many factors related to your circumstances and the current labor market. Understanding what it means to be "available for suitable work" in Ohio is critical to maintaining your eligibility.

What Does "Available for Suitable Work" Mean?

Being "available for suitable work" means you are ready, willing, and waiting to accept suitable employment. You must be exposed to the labor market. The determination of whether you are available depends on the specific facts and circumstances of your case.

While the requirement to be "able to work" simply means being physically capable of performing some work, not necessarily your former job, the "available for suitable work" requirement relates to your readiness to accept work that is deemed "suitable" based on specific criteria.

Generally, a claimant is expected to be ready and willing to accept suitable full-time employment on any shift for any day of the week. However, this general expectation may be unreasonable in certain situations, and the evaluation then focuses on whether the individual has placed undue barriers or restrictions on their availability.

Factors That Can Affect Your Availability

Several factors can lead the Director to determine that you are not available for suitable work, potentially making you ineligible for benefits for the week(s) in question.

Unduly Restricted Availability can include setting an unreasonably high minimal acceptable rate of pay, being unwilling to work all customary hours or shifts for your occupation unless based on a documented health condition, being unwilling to commute within the customary labor market area, having inadequate transportation to any available work, or having inadequate child care arrangements that prevent you from accepting work when offered. If you have a temporary medical condition that restricts you to working only remote jobs and you only apply for remote jobs rather than applying for all jobs and seeking a temporary accommodation, this can make you unavailable. However, there is no blanket rule that seeking only remote work automatically disqualifies you.

Absence from Your Local Area can also affect availability. Leaving the area for the primary purpose of vacation or visiting relatives or friends means you do not meet the availability requirement. Being out of the area over the weekend does not raise an availability issue unless your normal work week includes the weekend. Leaving an area with a reasonable possibility of obtaining work to move to an area with no work generally makes you unavailable, unless you can show efforts to find work in a nearby area with available opportunities.

Legal Detention for over 24 hours in a calendar week means you are not considered available for work.

Voluntary Leave of Absence presents another issue. If you have voluntarily withdrawn from work for personal reasons and expect to return at a future date, you are generally not entitled to benefits. This is because the employer/employee relationship has not been severed, and you've voluntarily made yourself unavailable.

Self-Employment can impact your availability as well. Factors considered include the amount of time per week you dedicate to self-employment, the similarity between the self-employment and your prior work, and whether you receive income from self-employment.

Situations Where Restrictions Might Be Permitted

Ohio law and case law recognize situations where certain limitations do not necessarily render you unavailable for suitable work.

Documented Health Conditions allow for limiting the shifts you are available for based upon a documented health condition that prevents you from working those shifts while still meeting the availability requirement.

Approved Training can satisfy availability requirements. If you are attending a training course recommended and approved by the Director, and you are regularly attending and making satisfactory progress, you meet the availability requirement even if it restricts your available shifts. This can continue for up to eight consecutive weeks between academic terms or during holiday recesses of the training.

Attending School Under Specific Conditions may also be acceptable. An individual who becomes unemployed while attending a regularly established school, and whose base period qualifying weeks were earned while attending that school, meets the availability and active search requirements if they regularly attend school and are available on at least one shift of hours for suitable employment.

Labor Union Membership provides another exception. If you are a member in good standing with a labor organization that refers members to jobs, you can meet the active search for work requirement by providing documentation that you are eligible for referral or placement upon request.

Temporary Layoff or Shutdown situations have special rules. If you are temporarily laid off due to a plant shutdown of 45 days or less, you must be available to your regular employer for any temporary suitable work during the shutdown. If you leave the local area during this time, your employer must be able to contact you for recall and you must be available to return without undue delay.

Compelling Reason for Part-Time Availability may be accepted. If your base period employment consisted of part-time work, and there is a compelling reason why you are not available for full-time work, such as caring for a special-needs child, being available for part-time employment may satisfy the availability requirement.

Involuntary Leave of Absence can qualify you for benefits if you are unemployed due to an involuntary leave of absence and are otherwise able and available.

Weekly Certification and the Availability Requirement

Each week you claim benefits, you must certify that you were "able, available and seeking work as instructed." If the Director finds that you were not available for suitable work on even one day during a claimed week, you would not be entitled to benefits for that specific week. Misrepresenting your availability can lead to significant penalties, including fraudulent misrepresentation findings.

Understanding these nuances is crucial. If you have circumstances that limit your availability, such as health issues, family obligations, or pursuing training, how you present this information and demonstrate your continued availability for suitable work within those limitations is vital to your claim.

Need Help Understanding Your Availability Requirements?

The "available for suitable work" requirement involves complex factual determinations that can significantly impact your unemployment benefits. If you're facing challenges with availability issues or questions about how your circumstances affect your eligibility, consulting with an experienced unemployment attorney can help protect your benefits and guide you through the certification process.