My girlfriend had to leave her job in 2021 due to her car breaking down. She was a school photographer and was required to drive herself and around 100 pounds of equipment to each job. She drove on average 3000 miles a month.
She received a letter from missouri unemployment early this year asking for a repayment of over $1k due to quitting for a personal reason.
The definition I was able to find for good cause connected to work was “‘Good cause connected with the work” means that the reason for leaving must be directly related to the employee's job and be so compelling that the employee had no choice but to leave the job.”
She had no way to transport her equipment to and from the schools which is an absolute requirement for the job, it is not like she could just take a bus to and from schools with all of the gear.
Anyone have any suggestions? Her hearing is tomorrow and they have rejected all follow up disputes. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.
Edit 1: she is currently full time in cosmetology school (40 hours a week). She moved back home and has been unable to find any part time jobs that are willing to work around her schedule. She has depleted all of her savings and has no source of income and thus no way to pay this money back.
Edit 2: one week after getting a new car she interviewed with the same company and was hired to work in the office. This shows she maintained a good relationship with the employer and showed a desire to work but was unable to due to her car breaking down from driving thousands of miles for work.