14.13 Good Cause.

A. The agency is responsible for determining good cause when a SNAP recipient fails or refuses to comply with SNAP work requirements. The agency must consider the facts and circumstances, including information submitted by the employer, by the household member involved and by the provider in determining whether good cause exists. Good cause includes circumstances beyond the member's control, such as, but not limited to: 1. Illness, 2. Illness of another household member requiring the presence of the member, 3. A household emergency, 4. The unavailability of transportation, or 5. The lack of adequate childcare for children who have reached age six but are under age 12. B. Good cause for leaving employment also includes: 1. Discrimination by an employer based on age, race, sex, color, handicap, religious beliefs, national origin or political beliefs; 2. Work demands or conditions that render continued employment unreasonable, such as working without being paid on schedule; 3. Acceptance of employment by the individual, or enrollment by the individual in any recognized school, training program or institution of higher education on at least a half time basis, which requires the individual to leave employment; 4. Acceptance by any other household member of employment or enrollment at least half-time in any recognized school, training program or institution of higher education in another county or similar political subdivision that requires the household to move and thereby requires the individual to leave employment; 5. Resignations by persons under the age of 60 which are recognized by the employer as retirement; 6. Employment that becomes unsuitable after the acceptance of such employment. Employment will be considered suitable unless: a) The wage offered is less than the highest of the applicable Federal or State minimum wage; b) The employment offered is on a piece-rate basis and the average hourly yield the employee can reasonably be expected to earn is less than the applicable hourly wages; c) The household member, as a condition of employment or continuing employment, is required to join, resign from or refrain from joining any legitimate labor organization; d) The work offered is at a site subject to a strike or lockout at the time of the offer unless the strike has been enjoined under section 208 of the Labor- Management Relations Act (Taft-Hartley Act), or unless an injunction has been issued under section 10 of the Railway Labor Act; or e) It fails to meet additional suitable criteria established by the agency. 7. Acceptance of a bona fide offer of employment of more than 30 hours a week or in which the weekly earnings are equivalent to the Federal minimum wage multiplied by 30 hours that, because of circumstances beyond the individual's control, subsequently either does not materialize or results in employment of less than 30 hours a week or weekly earnings of less than the Federal minimum wage multiplied by 30 hours; and 8. Leaving a job in connection with patterns of employment in which workers frequently move from one employer to another such as migrant farm labor or construction work. There may be some circumstances where households will apply for SNAP benefits between jobs particularly in cases where work may not yet be available at the new job site. Even though employment at the new site has not actually begun, the quitting of the previous employment must be considered as with good cause if it is part of the pattern of that type of employment. C. Good cause includes circumstances where the agency determines that there is not an appropriate and available opening within the E&T program to accommodate the mandatory participant. Good cause for circumstances where there is not an appropriate or available opening within the E&T program shall extend until the agency identifies an appropriate and available E&T opening, and the agency informs the SNAP participant. In addition, good cause for circumstances where there is not an appropriate and available opening within the E&T program shall only apply to the requirement to participate in E&T and shall not provide good cause to ABAWDs who fail to fulfill the ABAWD work requirement. D. To the extent that the information given by the household is questionable, the agency must request verification of the household's statements. The primary responsibility for providing verification rests with the household. Source: 7 CFR §273.7(i) Revised: March 2022