Yes I quit – but the industry quit on me first.

by Anonymous

I was a fabric sales representative selling to the interior design industry in south Florida. My sales had been greatly impacted by the downturn within the housing sector. My manager continued to believe that I was responsible for turning things around and indicated that, "I must stop the bleeding in my territory or they will find someone who will". As my income had already taken a huge hit and the outlook in south Florida, in my opinion, was looking more negative, I told him that I would leave the company. I worked for this firm for over 30 years. Subsequently, the territory volume, even with the new representative, has continued to fall unabated. The firm has laid off 20% of its sales force since I left.


Anonymous,

Florida does find good cause for quitting when the employer reduces wages, but this is just a little different..and I don't know how it will be decided.

I do know they take many things into consideration such as prior earnings, prospects for another job, pay for similar jobs in the locality, etc.

If your employer was really expecting you to maintain the levels you had before the economy fell off the cliff there might be good cause for unreasonable expectations of the employer.

Try searching here to see if something similar to your situation has been decided before.

It took me a long time to find the page above and I'm still learning how to use it, but I hope it will be of use.

Another option you might consider is asking an employment lawyer about your situation. It may be you don't need one, but an hour may be enough to get some ideas about creative applications of the statutes and other laws to build a winnable foundation for your case, which is the real value of an attorney.

Last year (2008) $7150 over a maximum duration of 26 weeks was the maximum amount of benefits a person could hope for from Florida. But with the 2009 stimulus and extensions now available, could conceivably raise the length of time a person could receive benefits to 59 weeks which would raise the maximum amount too.