Ariz. Admin. Code § 6-3-50155

Current through Register Vol. 30, No. 43, October 25, 2024

Section R6-3-50155 - Domestic Circumstances

A. General.

1. A worker who left work because of a domestic obligation involving a legal or moral responsibility of such a compelling nature that the worker could not disregard it left work for a compelling personal reason not attributable to the employer.

2. However, the mere existence of such a domestic obligation under subsection (A)(1) does not of itself mean that the worker was compelled to leave. If the worker had a reasonable alternative to leaving work that the worker failed to exercise, the worker left voluntarily.

B. Care of children. A worker who left work to provide care for a child may have left:

1. For a compelling personal reason not attributable to the employer, depending upon the degree of necessity for the worker to provide that care. The Department shall consider the following factors when making its determination:

a. Child's age,

b. Child's health,

c. Home and neighborhood surroundings that might affect the child's safety,

d. Availability of child care arrangements, and

e. Availability of a leave of absence for the worker; or

2. With good cause in connection with the work if:

a. The hours of work or place of employment were changed; or

b. The employer, without valid reason, refused a leave of absence.

C. Home, spouse, or parent in another locality.

1. The Department shall consider a spouse or unemancipated minor who left work to join the other spouse or a parent who has moved to a new locality, from which it is impractical to commute, to have left work for a compelling personal reason not attributable to the employer, if the other spouse or parent moved:

a. For a compelling personal reason; or

b. To establish a domicile at the new locality for three or more months.

2. The Department shall consider a spouse or unemancipated minor who left work to accompany the other spouse or a parent who is a member of the armed services and who is transferred to another locality as a result of official orders to have left work for a compelling personal reason not attributable to the employer.

3. For the purpose of this Section, an "unemancipated minor" is a person who is less than 18 years of age, is single, and who lives in the same household as the parent except for temporary absences, such as school attendance, vacations, or hospitalization.

D. Household duties. A worker who left work because working interferes with household duties left work without good cause in connection with the work, unless the household duties required of the worker are so compelling as to leave no reasonable alternative to leaving work.

E. Housing.

1. When a worker left work because of housing problems, the Department shall determine whether the worker left with or without good cause or for a compelling personal reason not attributable to the employer. The Department shall consider the following factors:

a. The availability of adequate housing within a reasonable distance of the work,

b. The cost of housing in relation to wages, and

c. Prospects of other work that would eliminate the housing problem.

2. A worker left with good cause in connection with the work if:

a. Adequate housing was promised by an employer and was not provided; or

b. The employer informed the worker that housing was available, but such housing was so primitive or sub-standard that it was a menace to the health of the worker or the worker's family.

F. Illness or death of others.

1. A worker who left work because of the death or illness of a member of the worker's immediate family or to provide care for a family member left work for a compelling personal reason not attributable to the employer if:

a. A leave of absence could not be obtained or would have been impracticable, and

b. No other reasonable alternative to leaving work existed.

2. A worker who left work to care for an ill relative left work with good cause in connection with the work:

a. If the worker's difficulty in caring for the ill relative was due to a change in working conditions, or

b. When the employer, without a valid reason, refused to grant a leave of absence for this purpose.

3. For the purposes of this Section, the following are members of a worker's immediate family:

a. Spouse;

b. Parent;

c. Child;

d. Sibling; and

e. Any other person with a similar relationship to the worker, including foster parent, step-child, or guardian.

G. Marriage.

1. When a worker left work to get married or because the worker has married, the leaving is voluntary and without good cause in connection with the work.

2. If the employer terminated the employment because of a company rule that prohibits continuing employment of both employees when co-workers marry, the separation is a discharge.

H. Domestic violence. Under A.R.S. § 23-771(D), if a worker left work because of domestic violence as defined in A.R.S. § 13-3601 or § 13-3601.02, the worker has left for a compelling personal reason not attributable to the employer if:

1. The circumstances required the worker to leave work and a leave of absence was not available or would have been impractical; or

2. Remaining with the employer would present a threat to the safety of the worker, the worker's family, or co-workers and no other reasonable alternative to leaving work existed.

Ariz. Admin. Code § R6-3-50155

Former Rule number -- Voluntary Leaving 155. - 155.4. Former Rule repealed, new Section R6-3-50155 adopted effective January 24, 1977 (Supp. 77-1). Amended effective March 19, 1979 (Supp. 79-2). Amended subsection (G), paragraph (2) effective July 24, 1980 (Supp. 80-4). Amended (A)(2), (B), (C), and (E) effective September 2, 1981 (Supp. 81-5). Amended effective September 24, 1986 (Supp. 86-5). Amended by final rulemaking at 13 A.A.R. 87, effective December 20, 2006 (Supp. 06-4).