Do 'mutual agreements' always pay out?

by Cyril
(New York, NY, USA)

I really did leave my job due to a 'mutual agreement.' The company told me that they will not contest my claim for unemployment. So, fine... what do I put on the form under 'reason for leaving'? Should I check the 'other' box and write 'mutual agreement'? And should my employer, assuming they want to cooperate, do the same?

I see a lot of discussion online about what happens in situations where the employer and the employee are at odds. But there is no conflict here. They want me to get the benefits. I want the benefits. But my fear is that, if we both write "mutual agreement" on the form, someone in the government will disqualify me anyway. Am I being totally irrational? Does the government have an interest in denying me the benefits?

This is in New York.


Hi Cyril,

I can count on all my fingers and toes, the number of times I have seen an employer response say the separation was mutually agreed upon.

Now there may be a few logical reasons for this.

1. The claimants do not apply for unemployment often.

2. That employer's may more often say it is a voluntary quit.

3. If the state doesn't require a response from the employer .. they don't.

What I have heard though is an employer asking what they can do to help a claimant get unemployment because of this situation. It eventually comes out that the claimant "self disqualified" them self. A mutual agreement can usually be backed up by an "employment contract" with a specific agreed upon date. This is what I understand to be a mutual agreement.

The basis of the system is that you must have lost your job through no fault of your own. States feel compelled by this requirement to assign fault.

If you put voluntary quit .. they'll want to know why. They want details and if you want a better answer than this one .. I need details.

You can call me a cynic if you want, but I would not trust the employer to "do the right thing" ever. Unless there is an employment contract with a specific end date of employment .. there is always an underlying reason for the departure from the employment.