Are churches exempt from unemployment taxes - confused about NYS Department of Labor rules

Churches in New York can choose to be exempt from unemployment insurance taxes, but many elect to participate in the system anyway. It depends on whether your specific church filed the proper paperwork with NYS Department of Labor to claim the exemption. You should ask your HR person or whoever handles payroll if they're paying into the UI system. If they are, you'd be eligible for benefits just like any other job.

yeah my sister worked at a church and when she got laid off she couldn't get unemployment because they were exempt... was a real pain for her financially

The exemption is specifically for churches and qualified church-controlled organizations under Section 3309(b) of the Federal Unemployment Tax Act. However, in New York, even exempt organizations can voluntarily elect to pay unemployment taxes and provide coverage for their employees. You need to verify with your employer whether they've made this election. If they haven't, you won't be able to collect UI benefits from that job, but any previous covered employment could still count toward a future claim if you meet the base period requirements.

This is so frustrating! Why do religious organizations get special treatment when it comes to unemployment? It's not fair to the workers who need these protections. I had a friend who got screwed over by this exact situation.

If you're having trouble getting clear answers from your church about their unemployment tax status, you might want to try calling NYS Department of Labor directly. I know their phone lines are always busy, but I recently discovered this service called Claimyr (claimyr.com) that actually helps you get through to agents when you can't reach them normally. They have a video demo at https://youtu.be/qyftW-mnTNI showing how it works. Might be worth checking out if you need to verify your coverage status with an actual person.

Just wanted to add that even if your church is exempt, it's still worth keeping track of your hours and wages there for documentation purposes. You never know when that information might be needed for other benefit programs or if the church changes their election status in the future.

I went through something similar when I worked at a nonprofit with religious ties. The key thing is to check your actual paystub - if you see "SUTA" or "State Unemployment" being deducted, then your church is participating in the system. If not, they're likely exempt. Also, don't forget that you can always create an online account with NYS Department of Labor to view your wage history and see which employers have reported wages for you. That's probably the most reliable way to know for sure without having to ask your employer directly.