Can I quit my job and get unemployment until I find another

by beverly johnson
(Manwah, NJ)

My husband was let go from his job of 20 years and he was the primary paycheck. Our lease ins coming up and we cannot resign, and we definitely cannot stay in the same area because it is too expensive. Because of his age, we know that he is not going to find the job and salary level that he had so we plan to relocate to any cheaper area so that we can have a roof over our head and do not have to look for jobs with very high salaries. We are presently looking in Florida, we can find a cheap apartment. I will have to quit my job to follow my spouse, will I be able to collect unemployment benefits from New Jersey?

Thanks for your help.


Hi Beverly,

New Jersey does have a provision that would allow benefits to follow a spouse, but you'd be wise to double check this with the state.

I found this information at the USDOL (Click Nonmonetary then go to Table 5-2 It's in the footnote 3/

I then went to the New Jersey unemployment website to verify, but after searching the statutes and the "Rights and Responsibilities booklet .. I couldn't find it. I'd call the state and ask them how you can confirm the information from the USDOL .. better safe than sorry. There is phone numbers in the booklet.