ARRRGGGGHHHHH

[mamajoan]

Today I received a letter from the unemployment office informing me that they have "received information that [I] may have refused an offer of work while collecting benefits" and that therefore I may be required to repay some of the benefits I've received.

Well, as you certainly know if you've been reading my journal, I have not received any offers of work. So I don't know where the hell this is coming from.

I called the number on the letter and spoke to some asshole who treated me like a criminal. He tells me that he can't disclose any information about the source of the "allegations" and that "it's in my best interest to be as forthcoming as possible." He says that I need to write a statement on the back of the letter and send it back to them. I say that I don't see how "forthcoming" I can be without knowing anything about the allegations. All I can write is that I haven't received any offers of employment. He repeats that I need to be "as forthcoming as possible." I repeat that it's hard to know what to say when he's being so vague.

Getting nowhere with that line of inquiry, I tried instead to ask him what would happen next. He says that after they receive my statement, they will "act on it." I said, what does that mean? He said that they will consider the entire case based on available information, and "take appropriate action." At this point I made a sort of exasperated half-laugh, half-sigh noise, and he goes, "This is no laughing matter, this is a fraud investigation." OMG!!! How am I supposed to not laugh when he's not telling me anything?!? I said again, what does "act on it" mean?? He says, "Prosecution."

I said, "So after receiving my statement, you'll notify me that you either are or aren't going to prosecute me?" He said, "Correct."

O. ... M. ... G.

I'm wracking my brains and I cannot for the life of me figure out who would be so cruel and vindictive as to do this to me, to tell the unemployment office that I had refused an offer of employment. Well, I have a couple of theories, but they seem so far-out wacky as to be almost totally implausible. And yet...it clearly has to be someone who knows my real name; so not just any random person surfing onto my LJ. But someone who wishes me ill. Is it YOU? Are you reading this even now and laughing your head off? I hope you fucking rot in hell.

Comments

[sandykidd.livejournal.com]

You know, I've been reading your journal all along and I don't recall you saying anything about even getting an offer let alone refusing one. In fact, all I remember you saying was that you got some callbacks on resumes, went for an interview or two, and saw that the company that laid you off was hiring again.

I suppose all you can do is spell out the details of each of your call-backs and interviews and include any leads that may still pan out, but otherwise... I've got no ideas.

[woobiewoobster.livejournal.com]

OMG, if someone is doing this intentionally it's so beyond wrong. Wow. And for the state to not give you anything to try to base your case on is wrong too.

[glaurung-quena.livejournal.com]

You obviously got in touch with the wrong person to help you. Call them again, and if you get the same asshole, ask to speak to a supervisor. Actually, you should ask to speak to someone who hasn't taken a Ph.D in being unhelpful, but that may be considered impolite.

My advice:

1. It's their job to treat you as a criminal and intimidate you -- or at least, the assholes who work there probably interpret that as being their job -- so try not to take it personally or allow it to fluster you.

2. You may not have the right to know what they have on file that makes them think you've had a job offer, but you do have a right to know what specific information they are going to need in order to refute the charge. Don't ask for it, demand it. Point out to them that if they aren't more forthcoming, then how are you supposed to prove to them that the charge is false -- after all, a simple letter "I have not gotten any job offers" simply pits your word against whatever they have on file that makes them think that isn't true. Make it clear to them that you will not let them roll over you, and that you will be appealing the decision, so if they force you to guess what information they need, they are basically wasting large amounts of their time and money.

3. If they continue to stonewall you, seek out a legal aid clinic (they do have those where you are, don't they?) and get some professional advice. If necessary, does your mom have a lawyer she has used in the past who could be hired to bark at them?

4. If I were you I wouldn't fret about who might have been cruel unless/until they actually let you know what the basis for their allegation is -- like as not there is no actual "allegation" from any real human being, and that's just asshole speak for "our data mining computer program, which generates huge numbers of false positives that justify my salary, spat out your name."

Sorry to hear that you've run into this pile of BS -- good luck getting it resolved.

[radegund-lj.livejournal.com]

Yikes!!!

I wonder if it's a mixup, someone with a similar name?

[tiggrrl.livejournal.com]

Umm, what happened to the requirement that you can't have an anonymous accuser in a legal case? I mean, I know this isn't a legal case yet, but...

I guess in your case I would write the letter stating where I had been interviewed, and that none of those interviews had resulted in a job offer. I might even include the contact info for each of those places, so that they can call up and have the people say, "Yeah, we didn't offer her a job." Hell, since this is being so stupid, I might even call each place myself, and say that they might be contacted by unemployment, and were they willing to comfirm that i hadn't been offered a job. I might even ask them to send me an e-mail to that effect and print them out to go with the letter. I know that's massively above and beyond, but it's better than random lawsuit by the state.

Still, unless some place offered you a job but didn't tell you (massively unlikely) or someone is out there pretending to be you and getting job offers (even less likely) it hopefully won't be too hard to disprove.

[mamajoan.livejournal.com]

Umm, what happened to the requirement that you can't have an anonymous accuser in a legal case? I mean, I know this isn't a legal case yet, but...
He did say that if it goes to court I'd find out the accuser's name and all other details. What a comfort.

[aelf.livejournal.com]

Don't you have to register who you're applying to and whether you get call backs? (I've never been on unemployment, but I think this has been the case for some folks I've known.) If so, couldn't they just call some of those companies? This sounds really ridiculous.

[mofic.livejournal.com]

I'm really sorry you're going through this. And I understand how lousy it is to think someone would bear false witness against you like that. However, in terms of responding to this, I think you don't need to know what was said or who said it.

This is what I think you should do: just be very forthcoming and very complete in what you have done to look for work, with dates, and results. Do you have a folder (electronic or real) of jobs you've applied for? I'd list them all if you can, or if not, list places you've applied, online resources you've used, headhunters you've spoken to, etc. For any interview you've actually gone on, list place, date of interview and outcome. And remember - since nobody offered you a job, there's no way you could get prosecuted. The more thorough and complete your response, the quicker this will end is my guess. Also, if this is truly some vindictive person and not just a mixup of files or some other bureaucratic snafu, maybe Vindictive Person will be the one prosecuted for fraud! If not, let's enlist the aid of my friend in the icon to take care of VP.

[lbmango.livejournal.com]

I like the idea of talknig to someone else, maybe a supervisor.

What are the odds that this is just a beurocratic mess-up? or a computer error?

When you say this is someone who knows your name, do you mean someone who knows your WHOLE name? Many of your FRIENDS don't know that...

As they say, never blame on malice what can be explained by stupidity...

[anotherjen.livejournal.com]

Holy crap. Just what you didn't need. Maybe your LJ entries could be a record of your lack of job offers.

[downwardlashes.livejournal.com]

Damn, were you a serial killer in a previous life? You have the worst luck sometimes!

[white-and-nrdy.livejournal.com]

Well wtf? I do know your real name (hell, I knew you in RL before LJ even existed) but I can assure you I had nothing to do with this. :)

It is possible to fight unemployment and win. I've done it. Not on this exact issue, but being laid off (from the employer I went to after our mutual workplace) and them saying I left voluntarily. But at least they didn't treat me like a criminal in that case. Then again, that was back before 9/11 and homeland [in]security and all that jazz.

Good luck. *hugs*

[frightened.livejournal.com]

Jesus fuck. Talk about stuff you really don't wanna have to deal with. I'm aiming some serious smackdown vibes at a) whoever accused you and b) the benefits people giving you a hard time.

[ima-omi.livejournal.com]

That's totally bizarre. And sucky. I hope you get to the root of it and find it's a computer error rather than somebody trying to screw you.

[pekmez.livejournal.com]

That sucks. I hope you can straighten it out.

Maybe you deleted some spam mail about a work-from-home pyramid scheme or a way to make M1LLi0Ns by investing with some dude in Nigeria. ;)

[evil-macaroni.livejournal.com]

OMG. I, too, hope it was just some sort of a mistake because what kind of psycho would do that to a mother with 2 little kids?! Good luck tomorrow getting to the bottom of this.
And what a dick, that unemployment guy: PIF!!!