At this stage in the unemployment appeal process, you have appealed your Notice of Determination and you have received a Notice of Hearing in the mail. The Notice of Hearing is in regards to the Referee Hearing that has been scheduled so you may present your case to a Referee so he/she can decide whether to grant you unemployment compensation benefits (“UC Benefits”).
At the very top of the Notice of Hearing, it will state the name and address of the Claimant and Employer. This is typical for most Notices of Hearings. This is the first section of the Notice of Hearing.
The next section on your Notice of Hearing is very important. It will state the date, time and location of your Referee Hearing.
On the far left, the Notice of Hearing will state the date and time of the Referee Hearing. For example, it will state Tuesday, November 17, 2014 at 10:45AM. Each Referee Hearing is generally allotted 45 minutes so hearing times are generally in 15-minute intervals. In the center of this section on the Notice of Hearing, it will provide the location of the Referee Hearing. For example, if your Referee Hearing is in Pittsburgh, PA, you will report to the Pittsburgh Referee Office, Suite 340 Piatt Place, 301 Fifth Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA 15222. On the far right of this section on the Notice of Hearing, it will state the Referee who will be presiding over your appeal. It will state the Referee’s telephone and fax number and also an email in case you need to contact the Referee for a postponement or a question.
The next section on your Notice of Hearing deals with the specific issues that will be addressed at your Referee Hearing. For example, if you quit your job, Section 402(b) of the Unemployment Compensation Law will be considered. You will then have to prove to the Referee that you quit for “necessitous and compelling reasons.”
The final section on your Notice of Hearing gives you instructions for appearing at the Referee Hearing. It will state:
“You MUST report at least 15 minutes prior to the designated hearing time to review the file for this appeal. Please bring this hearing notice and any other documents that you believe are relevant to this appeal with you. If you report to the referee’s office in person for the hearing or if you report in person prior to the hearing to review the case file or submit or retrieve documents you must provide some form of identification, which may include this notice. All hearings are recorded.”
This final section is basically telling you to report to your Referee Hearing early so you can review the Referee file and see all the documents submitted thus far for your appeal. It is always important to arrive early to review all documents so there are no surprises when you go into the actual hearing. It also gives you an opportunity to see who shows up from the Employer so you can prepare a proper defense for your appeal.
