Can I get unemployment if I haven't worked 2 years - NYS Department of Labor eligibility question
Hey everyone, I'm really confused about unemployment eligibility in New York. I've been working for about 18 months at my current job and got laid off last week. My coworker said you need to work for 2 full years to qualify for unemployment benefits but I can't find that anywhere on the NYS Department of Labor website. The base period stuff is really confusing to me. Has anyone here gotten approved for UI without working a full 2 years? I'm starting to panic because I have rent due next week and really need to know if I should even bother applying.
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Yara Abboud
Your coworker is wrong about the 2 year requirement. NYS Department of Labor uses something called a base period which is the first 4 of the last 5 completed calendar quarters before you file. You need sufficient wages in that base period, not 2 years of work. If you've been working 18 months consistently, you should definitely qualify. The minimum is usually around $2,600 in wages during your base period. You should absolutely file your claim right away.
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Connor Byrne
•Thank you so much! That makes way more sense. I was making about $18 an hour so I definitely have way more than $2,600 in wages. Filing my claim tonight.
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PixelPioneer
i got unemployment after only working 8 months at my job, the 2 year thing is totally wrong
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Keisha Williams
The base period calculation can be tricky if you had gaps in employment or worked part-time. When you file your NYS Department of Labor claim online, they'll automatically calculate your base period wages from employer reports. If for some reason you don't qualify under the standard base period, there's also an alternate base period they can check. Don't let anyone discourage you from filing - the worst they can do is say no, but you'll likely qualify fine with 18 months of steady work.
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Paolo Rizzo
•What if I had a few weeks where I was between jobs during those 18 months? Does that mess up the base period calculation?
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Keisha Williams
•Short gaps between jobs won't disqualify you as long as you have sufficient total wages in the base period. NYS Department of Labor looks at your total earnings, not continuous employment.
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Amina Sy
I've been trying to call NYS Department of Labor for 3 days about my own eligibility questions but can never get through. The phone system is absolutely terrible. I found this service called Claimyr at claimyr.com that actually gets you connected to real NYS Department of Labor agents when you can't get through yourself. They have a video demo at https://youtu.be/qyftW-mnTNI showing how it works. Saved me hours of calling and redialing.
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Connor Byrne
•That sounds helpful but is it legit? I'm always suspicious of third party services for government stuff.
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Amina Sy
•Yeah it's real, they just help you get through the phone queue. You still talk directly to NYS Department of Labor staff, they don't handle your claim or anything like that.
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Oliver Fischer
The whole unemployment system is so confusing!! Why can't they just make it simple and say exactly how long you need to work instead of all this base period nonsense. I'm in the same boat as you OP and stressing out about whether I'll qualify.
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Natasha Ivanova
Just to add some specifics - for 2025, the minimum wage requirement in your base period is $2,800 total, and you need wages in at least 2 quarters of your base period. With 18 months of work at $18/hour, you're definitely over both thresholds. File immediately because there's a waiting week and you want to get your claim processed as soon as possible.
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Connor Byrne
•Perfect, thank you for the specific numbers! Filing right now.
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