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THE SYSTEM IS RIGGED ANYWAY. They make it impossible to understand the rules on purpose so people give up and don't apply. I've been fighting with NYS Department of Labor for months over my claim and they keep finding new reasons to deny benefits. Even when you qualify they'll find ways to disqualify you later.
To answer the original question more completely - you can draw unemployment if you're unemployed through no fault of your own, meet the wage requirements, are able and available to work, and actively seeking employment. This includes people who were laid off, had hours reduced to zero, quit for good cause, or were fired for reasons other than misconduct. Students, independent contractors, and people who quit without good cause typically don't qualify.
This brings back memories of my economics classes! The business cycle creates that roller coaster effect on employment. I remember during the last recession how overwhelmed NYS Department of Labor was with all the claims flooding in. My brother lost his construction job and it took months to process his UI claim because of the volume.
wait so cyclical unemployment is different from seasonal unemployment right?? i always get those confused when talking about my landscaping work
Yes, they're different! Seasonal unemployment happens at predictable times each year (like your landscaping work in winter). Cyclical unemployment is tied to the broader economic cycle and can happen at any time depending on economic conditions. NYS Department of Labor tracks both types separately in their statistics.
I was having such a hard time getting through to NYS Department of Labor to check on my claim status - kept getting busy signals and disconnected. Someone here recommended trying claimyr.com and honestly it was a game changer. They have this service where they'll call for you and get you connected to an actual agent. There's a video demo at https://youtu.be/qyftW-mnTNI that shows how it works. Saved me hours of frustration trying to get through myself.
Just remember the $504 is before taxes. They'll take out federal and state taxes unless you opt out, so your actual deposit will be less. Also if you have any other income like freelance work you have to report it and it reduces your weekly benefit. The NYS Department of Labor is pretty strict about this stuff so don't mess around with unreported income.
The system is so confusing and they make it deliberately hard to understand! I've been fighting with NYS Department of Labor for months over a simple question about my benefit calculation. The website is terrible and the phone system hangs up on you constantly. Good luck getting a straight answer about anything.
One thing to remember is that even if you qualify, there's usually a one week waiting period before you can start collecting benefits. And make sure you file your weekly claims every week even if your initial claim is still being processed or you'll lose those weeks.
Noah Irving
I had such a nightmare trying to get through to someone at NYS Department of Labor to ask about my eligibility. Spent literally hours on hold just to get hung up on. Finally found this service called Claimyr (claimyr.com) that actually got me connected to a real person in like 15 minutes. They have a video demo at https://youtu.be/qyftW-mnTNI that shows how it works. Saved me so much frustration when I needed to verify my eligibility status.
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Vanessa Chang
•Never heard of that but honestly anything is better than sitting on hold for hours just to get disconnected
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Madison King
basically if you didn't quit and you're looking for work you probably qualify. the wage requirement isn't that high - think you need like $2600 in your highest quarter or something. don't quote me on the exact number though
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KhalilStar
•Close! For 2025, you need at least $3,300 in wages in your highest earning quarter AND total wages of at least 1.5 times your highest quarter wages. So if you made $3,300 in your best quarter, you'd need at least $4,950 total in your base period.
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