Q: What will happen if I file for Social Security Disability while receiving Unemployment Compensation in Arkansas?
I meet the listing for Asthma under Social Security Disability guidelines -- I've been hospitalized twice in the last year for over 24 hours, and have had multiple other attacks requiring physician intervention. I was notified the day I returned to work after the first hospitalization that I had been chosen for "workforce reduction". I applied for and am receiving unemployment compensation.
I contacted a lawyer who advised me that it was okay to file for disability while receiving unemployment. I would rather work, and have been looking for work. But there's a strong possibility that in any new job I take, my employer may fire me in the first year if I get sick (no FMLA protection).
I have no issues whatsoever with making sure there is no duplication of benefits -- if I were approved and received backpay for the time I received unemployment, I would be happy to pay the benefits back to whichever agency they belonged to. But I have to pay my rent!
What should I do?
A: Do not file as long as you are on unemployment. You will get declined and the state may prosecute you to recover the unemployment. The two are mutually exclusive. In order to collect unemployment you must swear that you are both able to work and looking for work. In order to draw disability you must swear that you are injured and unable to perform work of any kind.
Justia Ask a Lawyer is a forum for consumers to get answers to basic legal questions. Any information sent through Justia Ask a Lawyer is not secure and is done so on a non-confidential basis only.
The use of this website to ask questions or receive answers does not create an attorney–client relationship between you and Justia, or between you and any attorney who receives your information or responds to your questions, nor is it intended to create such a relationship. Additionally, no responses on this forum constitute legal advice, which must be tailored to the specific circumstances of each case. You should not act upon information provided in Justia Ask a Lawyer without seeking professional counsel from an attorney admitted or authorized to practice in your jurisdiction. Justia assumes no responsibility to any person who relies on information contained on or received through this site and disclaims all liability in respect to such information.
Justia cannot guarantee that the information on this website (including any legal information provided by an attorney through this service) is accurate, complete, or up-to-date. While we intend to make every attempt to keep the information on this site current, the owners of and contributors to this site make no claims, promises or guarantees about the accuracy, completeness or adequacy of the information contained in or linked to from this site.
