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I was recently fired from my job in Georgia. I wanted to…

I was recently fired from my job in Georgia. I wanted to know if I qualify for Georgia unemployment benefits. I was in fact fired for my work not being up to par, but I was working in a job that I really did not have the training for. I felt like it was pretty unfair for my employer to almost set me up to fail. Please let me know if there is anything that can be done!

Judging from your brief description, there is a reasonable chance that you will qualify for unemployment benefits under Georgia law.  The general rule is that a person cannot receive unemployment benefits if they have not followed the rules and instructions set out by the employer or they have failed to carry out their duties of employment that have been set out by their employer.  The law does become more specific, and hopefully to your benefit.  Under O.C.G.A. § 34-8-194, a person cannot be denied unemployment benefits if “[t]he individual made a good faith effort to perform the duties for which hired but was simply unable to do so… [t]he individual did not intentionally fail or consciously neglect to perform his or her job duties.”  So, a person cannot be denied benefits because they were just unable to perform their duties.  The former employer must prove that the discharge was caused by the deliberate, conscious former employee decision to be neglectful, careless, or dishonest.

If an employee is simply unable to perform their job and not because they were negligent, careless, or dishonest, then the employee may be able to collect unemployment benefits.  In your case, if you were not properly trained, but you made a conscious effort to succeed at your job, then you could be awarded unemployment benefits.  Unemployment benefit law does not punish those who cannot do their job for reasons that are out of their control.  If your only problem was that you were not properly trained and your lack of training was the cause of your subpar performance, you may be awarded unemployment benefits. Please contact Rumsey & Ramsey at (770) 394-9400 to discuss the facts of your case with a lawyer.