Let's go through a detailed look at the best states for unemployment benefits. Some states offer much better unemployment benefits than others.
“Why work if I make $1,800 a month in unemployment benefits?” was a question asked to me by someone I met in the hot tub.
At 28, Julie has been on unemployment for over 20 weeks. Her old job was as a designer for Billabong USA. During her time off, she's been selling some of her paintings via Facebook where she posts her portfolio.
Of course, all her art earnings are not reported, otherwise, her $450 weekly benefits will start getting garnished after the first $25 dollars of income earned.
The Unemployment Benefits Process Can Be Long
We've stayed in touch over the year and she's been generous enough to give me some insights into the unemployment process. She's planning a two month trip to Jamaica with her friends, and she wants to do the right thing by suspending her unemployment benefits for that time period because she won't be looking for work.
Despite her good intentions, she could not get through to the California Employment Development Department (edd.ca.gov) after calling 58 times. That's right, 58 times!!
If you receive mandatory WARN Act pay after getting laid off, don't wait until the WARN Act pay is done before applying for unemployment benefits. Apply for unemployment benefits before WARN Act pay runs out.
So guess what? She's going to Jamaica for two months and will have her friend back in California fill out her bi-weekly continued claim form.
One of the questions she will have to answer is, “Did you look for work during the week?” She will answer, “No.”, but undoubtedly, her unemployment benefits will still hit her Bank of America debit card like clockwork.
WOULD YOU WORK IF YOUR UNEMPLOYMENT BENEFITS EQUALED HALF YOUR EARNINGS?
$1,800 equals $21,600 a year in unemployment benefits. Back during the financial crisis of 2009-2011, President Obama has graciously allowed all Americans to collect up to 99 weeks, or $44,550 in unemployment benefits. Now that the financial crisis is over as of 12/8/2015, there is no more federal emergency unemployment benefits. The best we can now get is 26 weeks maximum by state on average.
If you make $44,000 a year, which is the income level you need to have in order to qualify for maximum benefits, would you bother finding another job making $35,000-$44,000 a year if you could make $21,600 a year ($1,800/month for six months) and do nothing?
Earning money under the table is rampant.
You can sell artwork like my friend, or teach lessons for cash. There are random hole in the wall restaurants who have “no credit card” policies. Why you ask? Because they are not reporting their full income and have separate books for the IRS. We all know that accepting credit cards is way easier than only accepting dirty cash in a restaurant.
Take a look at income profiles of financially free people who are hustling to make more money on the side. There are a lot of people making a lot more money beyond their W2 income.
I don't feel annoyed at all at my friend for collect unemployment benefits. She is holding out to the very end to find that ideal job. The government has allowed her to be patient, and that's exactly what she's doing. In fact, I feel happy that she gets to receive some benefits back from the government, since so few of us taxpayers even get 20% of what we pay to the government back.
The Best States For Unemployment Benefits
After doing some more digging, I've come to realize that California doesn't even have the best unemployment benefits despite being a high cost State. Hawaii has even more generous benefits at around $525 a week, or $2,100 a month!
1. Hawaii
Percentage of Weekly Wages Covered By Benefits: 54.3%
Average Weekly Benefit Amount: $416
Unemployed Receiving Benefits: 43% (Seventh Highest)
> Unemployment: 6.3% (Ninth Highest)
2. Rhode Island
Percentage of Weekly Wages Covered By Benefits: 45.9%
Average Weekly Benefit Amount: $380
Percentage of Unemployed Receiving Benefits: 27% (Eighth Lowest)
Unemployment: 11% (Fourth Highest)
3. Iowa
Percentage of Weekly Wages Covered By Benefits: 44.9%
Average Weekly Benefit Amount: $321
Percentage of Unemployed Receiving Benefits: 40% (16th Highest)
Unemployment: 6.1% (Sixth Lowest)
4. Kansas
Percentage of Weekly Wages Covered By Benefits: 44.7%
Average Weekly Benefit Amount: $326
Percentage of Unemployed Receiving Benefits: 35% (20th Highest)
Unemployment: 6.8% (12th Lowest)
5. North Dakota
Percentage of Weekly Wages Covered By Benefits: 44.6%
Average Weekly Benefit Amount: $310
Percentage of Unemployed Receiving Benefits: 36% (24th Highest)
Unemployment: 3.6% (Lowest)
6. New Mexico
Percentage of Weekly Wages Covered By Benefits: 43.7%
Average Weekly Benefit Amount: $316
Percentage of Unemployed Receiving Benefits: 32% (28th Highest)
Unemployment: 8.1% (23rd Highest)
7. Wyoming
Percentage of Weekly Wages Covered By Benefits: 43.3%
Average Weekly Benefit Amount: $337
Percentage of Unemployed Receiving Benefits: 34% (22nd Highest)
Unemployment: 6.2% (Eighth Lowest)
8. Utah
Percentage of Weekly Wages Covered By Benefits: 43.1%
Average Weekly Benefit Amount: $316
Percentage of Unemployed Receiving Benefits: 27% (15th Lowest)
Unemployment: 7.6% (17th Lowest)
9. Montana
Percentage of Weekly Wages Covered By Benefits: 42.5%
Average Weekly Benefit Amount: $272
Percentage of Unemployed Receiving Benefits: 48% (5th Highest)
Unemployment: 7.4% (14th Lowest)
10. Washington
Percentage of Weekly Wages Covered By Benefits: 42.3%
Average Weekly Wage Paid: $384
Percentage of Unemployed Receiving Benefits: 33% (25th highest)
Unemployment: 9.2% (16th highest)
Unemployment Benefits By State In A Pandemic
Here is the chart of the best states with the highest unemployment benefits during the pandemic. The first CARES Act is finished.
During extraordinary economic circumstances with enhanced unemployment benefits offered by the Federal Government, the value of a severance package goes way up too! Hence, never quit your job, try to negotiate a severance package and get laid off.
What's great is that even if you have investment income, you can still collect unemployment benefits. Unemployment benefits are tied to W-2 job income, and not to investment income.
Therefore, it behooves everyone to try and build as much passive investment income as possible for financial independence. It's not good enough to just contribute to your tax-advantage retirement accounts. You must focus on building up your taxable investment accounts and real estate portfolio.
Recommendation For Leaving A Job
If you want to leave a job you no longer enjoy, I negotiating a severance instead of quitting. If you negotiate a severance like I did back in 2012, you not only get a severance check, but potentially subsidized healthcare, deferred compensation, and worker training.
When you get laid off, you're also eligible for up to roughly 27 weeks of unemployment benefits. Having a financial runway is huge during your transition period.
Conversely, if you quit your job you get nothing. Check out the book How To Engineer Your Layoff: Make A Small Fortune By Saying Goodbye. It's an all-time classic that has been revised and updated six times for post-pandemic work life.
It's the only book that teaches you how to negotiate a severance. It was recently updated and expanded thanks to tremendous reader feedback and successful case studies. Use the code “saveten” at checkout to save $10!
The best states for unemployment benefits is a Financial Samurai original post. Join 100,000+ others and sign up for the free Financial Samurai newsletter. Financial Samurai is one of the largest independently-owned personal finance sites that started in 2009. Everything is written based off firsthand experience.
Great article! thank you, and from some of the comments I’ve read, this is CAPITALISM at it’s best! REMEMBER that!
great article, recently i became unemployed, and i must say that there are so many opportunities today to work at your pace.
personally i found koocam website and few more. that im feeling waste of time to work for someone else.
thanks for the great article. (following ;) )
I’m currently collecting unemployment from my Chrysler job which is $1000 a month in Michigan I basically make what someone brings home working hard at there $9-$10 hr job.I get to collect money and spend more time with my kid until my unemployment runs out!unemployment covers my rent and all my bills!
What if you’re on UI and doing 1099 work? Does California EDD have a way to find that? I assume that if you don’t tell them about W2 work, they can run your SS# and nab you. Since you fill out a W9 to do 1099 work, can they find that too?
You people need to realize that employers pay for unemployment,not the government.The government just makes sures that they pay.Not only that,a lot of businesses like Walmart and McDonald’s can easily afford to pay for it,because they almost all of their workers the bare minimum.So who cares if people get unemployment or for how long.Who ever wrote this article does not have all of their facts straight.
A tad off topic, but related, so I’m sorry. Alot of people seem angry with alot of the unemployment cost that tax payers have to pay for, and some of it rightfully so. In Washington for instance speaking of Boeing and other aoerospace companies, the state just gave somthing close to 1billion in tax breaks if I remember right, however these companies still send jobs to Mexico and other countries in order to pay workers 2-3 dollars an hour, even though these same companies post hundreds of millions to billions in earnings every year. These companies, imho should be responsible for the expenses incrued to the individuals, rather than the general tax payer. It’s not John Smiths fault that he lost his job through no fault of his own to a country paying less than 1 10th of his hourly wage. This to me is just an example of a failed system, situations like this should and could be fixed, however are not. John has every right to want a job that pays relativly close to what he previously made, there are courses now that you have to jump through hoops to get retrained for other jobs, however again at the expense of the tax payer. Somthing forcing companies to pay these expenses should be explored, and would at the very least lift the burden off tax payers slightly and make companies think things over before laying individuals off in masses. All that being said, people have every right after losing a job at no fault of theirs to make an attempt to find somthign (whether its through retraining or just happen to find a job with the qualifications they already poses)that will allow them to sustain the life style theyve been accustomed to by working at said company for X amount of years. (sorry for the errors and typos)
Washington state unemployment benefits are now $627 a week… max amount.
Wow, that’s a lot! So, $2,500+ a month in unemployment benefits?
Washington State is $790 a week max in unemployment benefits. I think the #1 or #2 in the country now.
Good thing that individuals can now get $600/week MORE due to the CARES Act in 2020.
Why can’t California give you that much.
I’m in construction and sometimes winter time gets slow and there’s no work. In calif you get $450 a week and your mortgage is 1,300 a month. You add all the rest of your bills and you cannot make it.
Hello. This post will be somewhat lengthy and I hope someone will take the time to read it and hopefully be able to offer some advice. Thank you in advance. I was laid off a good paying job at the end of December 2011. I was eligible for Unemployment benefits that penciled out to about half of my accustomed wage. At 58, I have been in the print advertising field for 30 years. My industry has taken a beating the last few years with newspapers and magazines shutting down or downsizing and any available advertising jobs in my area becoming scarce. Coupled with the digital revolution and the recession of the last few years, many older veterans of the industry (myself included) are being let go, or displaced by younger folks who have grown up during the digital age. Ten months (October 2012) after being let go from my last good job in December 2011, I finally was hired on by a newspaper that I commuted 100 miles round trip daily to. But it was the best I could get and I was aware that my benefits would not last much longer. In ten short months working for this newspaper (where I again earned about half of my normal income) I found myself back on the street looking for work again as this publication downsized (September 2013). I was eligible for benefits again and claimed through December 2013. From December 2011 to December 2013 I had to sell my home of 22 years, had a serious health issue, found myself over $20,000 in debt, living on a credit card and during the 2-3 months of health benefits I had during these two years I was told I could not use the benefits for my health issue because it was a Pre-Existing Condition. Needless to say, I was heading to the street. At the end of October 2013 after sending out many resumes without any response, I was contacted by an individual regarding a part-time contractor position selling advertising on the road for a small magazine. I was told I would be paid $750 a week for any week I worked but that I was responsible for all my own expenses (gas, food, taxes etc) and that there was not an office (the company was in another state). Initially I was also told there was also a ‘buy in’ of $150 for materials (work samples to show potential clients etc.). I was leery, as it seemed sketchy, but desperate for work and obviously money, so I gave it a shot. During November and December I was paid for some of the weeks I worked this contractor job, and I claimed benefits as well until the end of December, when the extended benefits ran out (Dec. 28, 2013). Last Monday (April 1, 2014) I was contacted by my state employment office and was left a generic message to call back to ‘chat’. I was left a second message today saying to call back and if I didn’t ‘a decision would be made on my claim based on existing information’ by Monday morning April 7, 2014. I have no other information and am not sure why they are calling as I have not claimed any benefits since December 2013. Would anyone have any idea why they would be calling? Right now, I’m still in a very tough situation and making $10 an hour as a Front Desk Clerk at a hotel. If you have any advice to share, it would be greatly appreciated. Thank you all for reading.
Hi Bill,
They basically want to:
1) Genuinely see how you are doing.
2) See if you are legally collecting unemployment benefits.
Basically, if you work even part-time, your unemployment benefits get reduced by a similar amount earned. This is why most people on unemployment don’t bother working a low paying job, or work and just receive cash.
I would do my best to reach out to them and set up a time.
PS Definitely try and use paragraphs when typing.
Good luck!
Sam
Interesting article. I recently became unemployed my employer terminated me without giving any reasons, any notice, any pink note, 2 weeks notice, or whatever… neither my Boss was there… they just told me “you cannot access the building, your relationship with the company doesn’t exist, go and start a new life…” (that was the Building Security, no one else talked to me)
They were taking unemployments for my paycheck so I applied and got my UIC ($374 Weekly). Now I’m getting a 1 month contract for $16 per hour… just for 1 month… I’m not gonna do it if I’m gonna loose my UIC that I have, and covered at least through summer….
I prefer to use the time and money to get a Course, Certification or Training in something that can “upgrade” my Resume, and from there find a good job.
For people who think unemployment should be taken advantage of, move to France – you can enjoy your life in a system that punishes people for being enterprising and reward laziness. That is what happens when everyone takes their 99weeks. Please don’t change the US for the worse.
Unemployment is helpful but not a means to an end.
And for the record, yes, the cost of living in Hawaii is comparable to San Fran and NYC but did you bother looking into the salary of the average person living in SF/NYC compared to Hawaii?
Cut it by 20-30% if you’re seeking employment and make do with that + add the competitive market and the fact that it is very much a small town mentality and based on who you know.
The average house is 300k min unless you want a very long 3-4hr commute. If you want a home that’s comparable in size and acreage to the mainland, they run 600-700k and they’re not on large acreages.
I’ve lived in all 3 places – for the most part, Hawaii is a beautiful place to live, and for $4000 a month a couple can live the life if there are no mortgages or debt, but you have to make that much to qualify for the max first so realistically – how many of said people in Hawaii can do that?
But if you want to come here and bum out on your unemployment, Aloha! We sure could use your spending money.
I am a former NYS worker; ended mid May. I just got 5 days vacation pay. I plan to admit that this Sunday when I make my claim. But what are the repercussions? Does my $400/week get wiped out?
i have been working since i was 16 and recently turned 50 and have never claimed unemployment. i have decided to return to school because i am sick to death of retail and realize that i still have 20 years in the job market. my years of employment and my age make me eligible for retirement with my current company but that does not help if i cant collect on the unemployment . i would like to do a full class load but cant work full time and achieve that goal; and definately cant afford to have no money coming is as we are struggling as it is. the company is growing by leaps and bounds so i wont be laid off and quitting wont work; there isnt a good reason for it. any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.
I would definitely consider engineering your own layoff to get severance, unemployment, and COBRA. You have more rights than you know. Click the link if you want to find out more.
I am sorry Financial Samurai but if I met a 28 year old sunshine girl in a hot tub with nothing to do I am not sure that I would be too interested in discussing her employment status, art work, or future vacation plans – but maybe its just me!
I have been a seasonal worker in NYS for several yrs. I usually max out by using my alternate quarter. This year has been a complete nightmare using UI. It’s impossible to contact UI. I am still waiting for UI to increase my benefit rate, 4wks of waiting. Thankfully I had a moderate amount saved, but that doesn’t last.
I am not required to look for work because I have a predetermined call back, and I am a union worker. My work is found thru my union.
I don’t know anyone who prefers to be unemployed to having a real paycheck. NYS UI only pays 1/26 of your highest quarter and maxes out @ 405$. That isn’t living high on the hog! Thankfully I only collect 4 months out of each yr. If I exhaust the 26 weeks I would end up homeless, and at 405 I wouldn’t qualify for any other government assistance.
NYS UI needs a better system of connecting to an actual person from the department of unemployment. I have spent everyday the last 10 days trying to contact UI, I have called every 1 1/2 with no luck. The system only allows you so many attempts to have a call back and then simply hangs up on you. It’s a living nightmare!! The bonus is that even going into your local “unemployment office” serves no purpose because they have no authority to handle issues of UI, ie… alternate quarter payments, non payment ect…. The people in the office can only simply direct you to call the number lol…. It has become a complete joke.
Can you tell me if my UI will be reduced by my necessity for signing up for social security due to no job? i’ll be 63 this year, so i’m on the early side starting ss now, but cannot make my financial obligations on UI alone. it’s very confusing. i need some clarity — does washington state reduce your ui benefits if you sign up for and start collecting ss?
Yes.
Why work when you can make $1,800 a month for doin’ nothin’?!
Here’s the thing– I was working a six-figure job here in California when I was let go in June. You can do the math, but suffice it to say that $1,800 is a lot less than what I was making before. The idea that somehow, in any way, I can “collect” half of my six-figure salary in benefits is ludicrous.
The people I know (myself included) who make any money on the side are more likely to declare it, because it helps extend how long you can collect benefits (by not receiving the money, you are leaving it in the account). You ultimately do not get ANY more money if you wind up exhausting your benefits. It’s one thing to know your benefits are going to run out, it’s another thing to be doubtful that you will find full-time employment before that happens.
Just to continue medical coverage under COBRA would have cost $500/month– out of the $1,800 that, PS, I’m still responsible for income taxes on.
Where does most of the money go? To stave off building expensive debt. Almost nobody who has to work a full-time job to start with is prepared for nine, six, or even three months of covering their full expenses. Very few people live working lifestyles that are remotely sustainable on a third of their income. I mean, DUH. Do you think the average person spends 1/3 of their income on expenses and then just banks or invests the rest?
Even though I, personally, was earning six figures, I kept my fixed personal expenses to a minimum: modest car lease, creative living arrangements, a 30-day interruption in my UEI benefits has nearly wiped out my bank account.
I’m not at all saying it’s a perfect system– far from it– but the saying that somehow you can be a do-nothing, then start collecting $1,800 a month is worse than dishonest.
Can you elaborate on how declaring side income helps extend how long you can collect benefits? As far as I known, you get benefits if you are unemployed for as long as the state and federal gov’t is willing to pay if you fill out the form and look for work.
Are you sure most people don’t save some of their wages and have passive income streams? Check out this post on “How Much Savings Should I Have By Age” written on 12/4/12.
I don’t understand how a 30-day interruption in getting UB ($1,800 a month) can WIPE OUT your bank account when you were earning six figure? What on earth are you spending money on?!
When you pay into the system all these years through a lower salary by your employer, why is it dishonest to collect your money back if you can’t find a job?
Finally, never quit your job, get laid instead.
The money does run out. Now the government is in sequestration, and the extension benes are being cut.
Every state has a max benefit as well, no one makes half of their 6 figure salary. I’d be surprised if anyone on UI makes $40,000. And this is all taxed: fed and state. Employees do not “pay into” the UI system. UI is an INSURANCE premium the EMPLOYER pays based on the number of employees.
When applying for UI immediately after a termination, one is “awarded” a benefit generally good for 26 weeks at a fixed $ amount. They have up to 52 weeks to collect that fixed $ amount. So to clarify, because this is always confusing: the fixed $ amount will be 0 after 26 weeks of continuous collecting. If you work and claim you’ve made money, the weekly amount is reduced by what you made and you can collect for that much longer because the balance is not draining as quickly.
The Emergency Extensions were rolled out in 4 tiers. Once you clear out the full amount of the original benefit you are enrolled in the 1st tier. Again, you must be eligible for another fixed $ amount. You will be able to collect that amount over the next x amount of weeks. Once that fixed amount has reduced to $0, you go to the next tier. Etc.
By telling UI that you have earned some money, one would retain that UI benefit. IE, if the weekly amount was 400, you claimed you earned 100, UI sends a check for 300, and that 100 remains in the balance, thus extending the amount of time you can continue to claim against it. The reason was so if you took a temporary position, you would have a balance to come back to.
Originally, if you took a position that lasted long enough so your claim expired and then were terminated, you would not be eligible for benefits until after you had made 3x or 4x the amount of your claim (varies by state). As specific industries have been collapsing, people were flocking to competitors.. who then also collapse.. you may see how easy it could be to quickly fall on very difficult times even if you were lucky enough to get another job within a few months.
Sequestration has now reduced the amounts in all the tiers. And the eligibility for the 4th tier is starting to expire.
If you have not experienced this new corporate phenomenon.. companies hire you as a permanent employee and impose a probationary period (typical). As you reach the 90 or 180 day mark, the job ends, the company reorganizes, terminates you and you are back to UI.
Or, worse still, your ex employer contacts you to offer a job on 1099 status, but at original employee pay rates. 1099’s must pay their own self employment taxes, etc. Now you are working at HALF the employees pay and when the job ends, there is no UI available because you are an independent contractor.
It’s just tons of fun out here looking for good paying jobs. I’m having a blast collecting less than half my salary and watching everyone bicker about my lazy ass.
Note that we can’t even enroll for four year degree programs. That is not approved education in most states, and disqualifies you from UI benefits! Just how f*ed up is that?!?! I have an AAS. I’m taking certificate classes and paying for them via credit card because financial aid (READ: BANK LOANS, not more free government money!!) does not apply unless you are enrolled in a degree program.
If the gov’t is funding my UI, why wouldn’t it be prudent for me to give back that $$ to a state school to get a degree? A higher degree is proven to retain higher paying jobs and further the economy. There are even graphs on my state’s UI sites that show this! This is pretty ridiculous.
https://www.qualityinfo.org/olmisj/OlmisZine?zineid=00000005
I apologize for spelling mishaps on the above post. My smartphone would not let me audit and correct. Grrrrrr…
I am 52 years old and work in the healthcard field. I would be very hard pressed to survive on 1, 800 a month. At this moment my biggest fear is the possibility I may lose my job this coming year. I live in California. I have worked full time without ever being unemployed, since I was 20. The fact that so many buisnesses are shuttingn in California is severely impacting my work and employment oppertunities ( if I should lose my job). I am single and live alone. My rent for a run down, 1 BR apartment is 1, 100. My insurance (the lovely Anthem Blue Cross) is now up to 805.00 per month. That leaves me with……zip. I am in a quandry. The employed person I am now would vote Republican. However, I may be unemployed and then may lean toward Democratic side. I will not state who I decided to vote for. However I will say that if I lose my job and can’t find fulltime employment, I will move to Oregon where the job market (in my field) is better.
Interesting blog. I have read all of the posts. I was laid off on 8/31/12. I am 59 years old and this is my first time collecting unemployment benefits. As of this date, I am not eligible for any federal extensions. Anyone in California who filed for unemployment after 6/30/12 is not eligible for federal extensions. Moreover, all federal extension benefits will end as of 12/31/12, unless the Feds initiate an “emergency” extension before the end of this year. I had a nice IRA but have been using it for the past two years to supplement my income, which decreased by 66% due to the economic situation for my field of expertise in the San Francisco area. I am single and collecting $1604.00 per month from UI and that barely covers rent and utilities. I can understand how unemployment could work for a couple but for a single person it is less than sufficient in the Bay Area. I have historically voted Republican but I am definitely voting for Obama this November because, as you stated earlier,”people vote with their pocket books”.
Hi Karina,
I didn’t realize CA people who filed for unemployment after 6/30/12 are not eligible for federal extensions. This must be new legislation yes as the CA unemployment rate dips?
I can’t believe all Federal extensions will end on 12/31/12. I’m willing to bet whatever the Federal extensions will continue.
Just found this on EDD:
New Developments on Federal Unemployment Extensions
(Updated September 25, 2012)
En español
09/25/12 12:00 p.m.
Updated: Number of individuals who have run out of benefits is now over 875,700.
We are fast approaching the end of the federal extensions of Unemployment Insurance (UI) benefits here in California. According to federal law, the last payable week ending date for all federal extensions is December 29, 2012. The maximum amount of benefits available in federal extensions is now up to 73 weeks of benefits depending on when your regular UI claim and extensions are filed. The chart below illustrates how the extension tiers are adjusted per federal law. Claimants should also be aware of new requirements in place to continue eligibility for extension benefits.
At the peak of the recent recession, the federal government provided California and other high unemployment states up to 73 weeks of additional unemployment benefits through various tiers of federal extensions. Combined with regular state unemployment benefits of up to 26 weeks, out-of-work Californians could have been eligible for up to 99 weeks of benefits.
But in May of this year, the state was notified by the U.S. Department of Labor that we no longer met the minimum criteria for providing FED-ED extension benefits, typically the last stretch of up to 20 weeks of extension benefits. While California’s total unemployment rate remains high, it is not significantly higher than it was during the last three years as is required by the federal program. So the EDD cannot pay any further FED-ED benefits for weeks that end after May 12, 2012, even if someone had a remaining balance on their FED-ED extension.
As we get closer to the end of the year, eligible unemployed workers may not qualify for all the federal extensions (Tiers 1 – 4). The majority of unemployed workers with a regular claim that qualified for 26 weeks of regular unemployment benefits, claimed full weeks of benefits since the start of their claims, and had no breaks in collecting benefits (i.e., returned to work) could anticipate the following based on when their regular claim started:
For regular claims that started after June 2012, the majority of unemployed workers may not qualify for any federal extension benefits when their regular claim ends.
For regular claims that started after January 2012, the majority of unemployed workers may potentially qualify for up to 20 weeks in Tier 1 when their regular claim ends but not the maximum benefits available in Tiers 2-4.
For regular claims that started after October 2011, the majority of unemployed workers may potentially qualify for up to 20 weeks in Tier 1 and up to 14 weeks in Tier 2 when their regular claim ends but not the maximum benefits available in Tier 3 and Tier 4.
For regular claims that started after August 2011, the majority of unemployed workers may potentially qualify for up to 20 weeks in Tier 1, up to 14 weeks in Tier 2, and up to 9 weeks in Tier 3 when their regular claim ends but not the maximum benefits available in Tier 4.
For regular claims that started after May 2011, the majority of unemployed workers may potentially qualify for up to 83 weeks available in Tier 1-4 when their regular claim ends.
Regardless of when your regular claim or extension benefits start, December 29, 2012, will be the last week ending date that EDD can pay federal extension (Tiers 1 – 4) benefits to eligible unemployed workers, even if someone is currently unemployed or has a remaining balance on their federal extension.
S
You don’t know what you’re talking about. In California the Maximum Benefit Amount is the lesser of either half of what you earned in your best quarter (eg $40,000/2 = $20,000) or your weekly benefit $450 (Max) x 26 weeks = $11,700 for the year. So the greatest amount you could receive in a year is $11,700, about half of what you claim you can receive. In the case where you made $50,000 in a year ($12,500/quarter) your Maximum Benefit Amount would only be $6,250, or just over $500/month if you were unemployed for a year.
$450 x 26 weeks, and then you get another 26-70 weeks for federal extension at the same rate you forget.
I stand corrected, I wasn’t aware of the federal extension. It doesn’t seem right that the people who need it the most get the least. By my calculations those eligible for the maximum would have to be making $93,600 or more ($23,400/year in benefits) are the one’s who need it the least.
She called 58 times??? The best way to get ahold of EDD is to send an email. This information is also stated on their website. She knew that!!!! EDD will respond within a day. I bet if those benefits ran out she would’ve knew exactly how to get ahold of them. Your friend is playing the system.
Why put out a number if one can’t get through?
I’m 61 years old and lost my job last September. I also lost my home. I’ve been searching for work this whole time in my field (legal assistant) but no luck. I’m willing to take a lesser paying job, but I’m not going to work at McDonalds. UB has been a real blessing for me. It will end in December, if I haven’t already found something by then. I would love to get off UE and work again. Actually, I’d like to start my own business and I’m not concerned so much about docking my unemployment as I am about getting it delayed while they decide to interview me regarding job search, hours, etc. EDD policies discourage entrepreneurship. Most of us getting unemployment rely on that check every two weeks. My understanding is that it could be delayed a couple of weeks. I’m afraid my health insurance could be cancelled ($450/mo).
By the way, are all you young people (I’m assuming) speech writers for Mitt Romney? In the 60’s, we cared more about social justice and fairness – not the almighty dollar. I miss that with the younger generation now.
Just my opinion….
Robbie,
Question for you. At 61, is it safe to assume you have saved and invested for at least 30 years after HS or college? If so, hasn’t that money compounded handsomely over the years and with the addition of unemployment benefits, life is pretty good?
I’ve gone John Galt btw.
Great blog! I’ve been thinking about passive income streams to fund my retirement for a while now, so it’s inspiring to see how well you’ve done for yourself.
Specific to unemployment, I’m also in the SF bay area, recently laid off from a tech company, so I’m looking at the entitlements via unemployment insurance, but specifically how it would be impacted by any preparation work I do to become self-employed (services contractor/consultant), or any income streams I am able to set up while on UI and getting prepared to start my own business.
You mention “her $450 weekly benefits will start getting garnished after the first $25 dollars of income earned.” I haven’t been able to find any information on this on the CA EDD site. Is this a direct offset, e.g. earn $400 and only get $50 that week, or a sliding scale of some sort? Thx!
It is so brutally hard to find the garnished wages section! I looked for 30 minutes online and couldn’t find out. Where I did see it is in an EDD physical handbook that was sent to a friend of mine. So frustrating not to be able to pull it up online.
Anyway, just trust me when I say your earnings will be garnished, which means the system encourages you to not work unless the income is very good.
Please read: Achieving Financial Freedom One Income Slice At A Time
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That being said, I found your blog recently while doing some research on real-estate investing and find it overall really good. Thanks for putting this blog together. Just do not agree with this particular article.
Wow, how is this thread even defensible. That fact that these folks are lying to keep their benefits (including actively working while they are collecting benefits) is pure dishonesty and stealing. These safety nets were put in place with good intentions to help prevent folks from becoming destitute and losing everything they owned while they were actively looking for a job, any reasonable job. In regards to the lady “collecting unemployment benefits until she finds the perfect job”, again, this is not the purpose of unemployment. An analogy would be lying so that a cosmetic procedure would be covered by your health insurance, when you know full well health insurance is to pay for actual medical conditions, not cosmetic procedures. Any way you slice it, it is stealing and in the end affects all of us.
The state/feds don’t want people qualified for X+Y+Z to only do Z eg a lawyer working as a barista.
She tried calling 58 times, and is marking “NO” on not working while in Jamaica.