I continually see posts about the difference between getting fired and quiting and how it impacts on unemployment. Isn’t it a simple as if you’re not working, you’re unemployed, thus can claim unemployment benifits until you start working again? It seems much more complicated, if someone could give me a general explanation that would be great.
I understand it may vary between states, but a general outline would be awesome. I’m trying to understand a lot of the posts I see about quitting/ getting fired/ claiming benifits/ back claiming benifits, etc. As a non American I’m very confused and google was unhelpful. Thankyou!
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Typically quitting or getting fired for something that is your fault, you will be denied unemployment. Being let go through no fault of your own is how you get approved for unemployment.
Yes, it’s completely by state so there’s 51+ answers. Federal law controls the limits and options though.
Employers pay payroll taxes towards the state unemployment system, so it’s not good for them indirectly to have former employees collecting employment. Generally quitting or being fired with cause make you ineligible for some varying time, but it’s not cut and dried and you can quit a hostile work environment or a workplace that has slashed your hours significantly enough to be a burden. And can anyway appeal.
I suspect a lot of the backpay discussion is under covid, where tons of people needed unemployment but the backlog was severe, so they needed to place literally hundreds of phone calls and then would get a lump sum for the previous time.
I think in the state of Washington you have to be dislocated from your job due to no fault of your own. And when receiving unemployment insurance benefits you need to apply to three jobs per week or engage in qualifed employment counseling (resume workshop, one on one discussion of your situation with a work source employee for guidance).
My boyfriend was unemployed and went to a work source counseling session and got a referral for a worker retraining grant. He was able to go back to school tuition free for an in-demand applied certificate. He got that extended to a full bachelor’s. All mostly for free at the age of 34.
We don’t have one unemployment system but many of them. Each state (and I assume DC and the territories) have their own unemployment system and can decide what to do and how to qualify.
In my state, you are generally not going to get unemployment benefits if you quit or are terminated for cause. You will only get them if you are laid off through no fault of your own, this includes a reduction of hours (IE a full time worker only getting part time hours).
Unemployment is a form of insurance / tax that the employer pays through tax. The administration of the program is handled by each state. I’ll give a general overview but things can vary tremendously by state.
In general, unemployment is for when the employee is terminated. They don’t want to incentivize people to quit, so typically unemployment applies when the employer fires the employee. But even if someone is fired, the reason matters. If an employee is fired for theft, they’re probably not going to receive unemployment benefits. Someone who fired for performance or attendance will likely receive unemployment. But the state makes the determination.
The process works like this. Employee is fired, files with the state. The state contacts the employer, who responds. The state then makes a determination. Either party has the ability to appeal. Then there are appeals hearings. I had one case drag out for over a year.
During the early months of the pandemic there was extra funding and most states approved almost every claim because of the volume. There was also a ton of related fraud, which is a form of identity theft.
It’s a complicated system.
It’s pretty stupid. I got laid off once and was making more on unemployment than I was before I got laid off. This was with the covid stuff though. You get more money up to a certain amount if you previously made more at your job. This is state by state though, so it varies.
Like everything else. U pay a lot and get very little in return.
State dependent, like you said.
Generally not available if your unemployment is your fault– ie, if you quit or if you’re fired for misconduct.
There’s generally a duration limit– 6 months or something.
You need to demonstrate that you’re consistently making an effort to find new work.
The amount of money you receive is a function of your recent income from employment, and capped at a fairly low amount. It is generally less than you’d earn with regular employment– but there were some temporary covid-related supplemental benefits that resulted in some low earners making more from unemployment than from work.