J. Gajewski v. UCBR, J. Gajewski v. UCBR

Claimant Jennifer Gajewski filed for unemployment benefits on June 23, 2016 and was required by law to register on the CareerLink/JobGateway website within 30 days.
On July 14, 2016 the Department mailed a 21‑day letter warning her that registration was incomplete and explaining how to complete it and where to get help.
The Department determined and notified Claimant on August 1, 2016 that she was ineligible for benefits because she had not completed CareerLink registration within 30 days.
At an administrative hearing Claimant testified she attempted online registration on July 15, believed it was complete, experienced website errors and did not realize she needed to upload a resume.
The Referee affirmed disqualification under 43 P.S. § 801(b)(1)(i); the Board adopted the Referee’s findings and refused to waive the 30‑day requirement.
This Court reviewed the Board’s order and affirmed, concluding Claimant failed to show good cause for the delayed registration and did not rebut the presumption she received the 21‑day notice.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Whether failure to register with CareerLink within 30 days disqualifies claimant from benefits	Gajewski: she did not complete registration within 30 days but attempted online within period	Department: statute and regulation require registration within 30 days; claimant did not comply	Held: Failure to timely register supports disqualification under §401(b)(1)(i)
Whether claimant established "good cause" to waive the 30‑day requirement due to website errors	Gajewski: website errors and confusing fields prevented completion; calling the hotline was impractical while caring for a newborn	Department/Board: claimant knew of requirement, received 21‑day notice advising assistance options, and did not seek timely help; testimony did not substantiate excessive hotline waits	Held: No good cause shown; waiver denied because record does not show reasonable excuse or active job search compliance
Whether claimant rebutted presumption of receipt of the 21‑day notice and relied on inadequate notice	Gajewski: testified she didn’t recall receiving the letter	Department: produced attestation that letter was mailed, invoking mailbox rule to presume delivery	Held: Mailbox‑rule presumption stands; claimant’s non‑recollection insufficient to rebut presumption

Department of Labor and Industry v. Unemployment Compensation Board of Review, 131 A.3d 597 (Pa. Cmwlth. 2016) (explaining "good cause" standard and waiver of the 30‑day registration requirement)
Douglas v. Unemployment Compensation Board of Review, 151 A.3d 1188 (Pa. Cmwlth. 2016) (discussing mailbox rule and presumption of delivery of agency notices)
Volk v. Unemployment Compensation Board of Review, 49 A.3d 38 (Pa. Cmwlth. 2012) (addressing mailbox rule and evidentiary presumption of mailing)