The time frame would have fit me, I was let go from my Ford dealership internet job on September 29th after 1 year and 1 week. I was colelcting unemployment but then I got a letter before New Year's saying that the dealership reported I was terminated/fired instead of laid-off and I had to explain what happened. The letter states that if in their investigation I am found to be hiding info or misleading them then I have to pay FOUR TIMES the amount of money I was given during October to December 31 2009. I'm screwed if that happens since my only income was unemployment. I have a modest PayPal balance due to my hoodliner business but nothing close to 4x a penalty amount.
Funny thing is during the meeting when I was let go being "fired" was never mentioned.
I'm always looking for a job, but nothing is on the horizon.......
I've gotten unemployment 3 or 4 times, so I've got experience. (Quality engineers are ALWAYS the first to go at any trouble)
Pretty much everything the folks have said here is true. Here are some other tips for you:
1. Laid off or fired frivolously, always file for unemployment. Don't listen to the 'friendly' advice of your now-former employers. 4 employers fought me on it, and I won 3 times. One for being too knowledgable, one because a coworker didn't like me, and one because the CEO didn't like the way I looked at her. The agency people who call you are easily convinced if you were in fact fired frivolously. The one I lost was my fault - I filed, the employer appealed, we went before a judge, and I called my former boss as a witness, thinking he would back me. I didn't know that he was demoted and threatened termination if he didn't testify to a false statement written by the company's VP of operations. Totally blind-sided.
2. If you lose a filing or appeal, they will ask for the money back, like they did for me. However, you can file a hardship application and not pay back a dime - like me. We had zero income, no assets, and a load of credit debt. We got no hassles from them on it.
3. If you last long enough in a job to get a performance evaluation, keep a copy at your house. I've been fired without any warning and escorted out of the building, so I'm glad I already had what I needed to win unemployment. Good performance evaluations (signed by your boss are the best) are almost impossible for an employer to beat. They just end up looking stupid. In fact, I use my evaluations from all of my previous employers in job interviews...they love those, and I've ALWAYS ended up getting the job when I do that. They are basically gold-plated references.
On a sidenote, I think it's really sad that I'm an expert on this, but if I can help one person with this info, it will be worth it.