Confused about what wages are subject to unemployment taxes for NYS Department of Labor eligibility
I'm trying to figure out my benefit amount and I'm confused about which of my wages actually count for unemployment tax purposes. I had a couple different jobs last year - one regular W-2 job at a retail store, some 1099 contractor work doing graphic design, and I also made some money selling stuff on Etsy. My employer said something about unemployment taxes but I don't really understand what wages are subject to those taxes and which ones aren't. Does anyone know how NYS Department of Labor determines this? I want to make sure I'm reporting everything correctly when I file my claim.
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Ravi Patel
Generally speaking, most wages from W-2 employment are subject to unemployment taxes up to the state wage base. For 2025, that's typically around $12,300 in New York. Your regular retail job wages would definitely count. The 1099 contractor work usually doesn't count toward unemployment eligibility because independent contractors don't pay into the unemployment system. The Etsy sales would likely be considered self-employment income, which also typically doesn't qualify you for regular unemployment benefits.
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Emma Johnson
•Oh wow, so basically only my retail job wages would count? That's way less than I thought. What if I made more than that $12,300 at my retail job?
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Astrid Bergström
The wage base limit means your employer only pays unemployment taxes on the first $12,300 of your wages per year, but ALL your W-2 wages count toward your benefit calculation, not just the taxed portion. So if you made $20,000 at retail, the full $20k counts for your weekly benefit amount. NYS Department of Labor looks at your total covered wages over your base period to calculate benefits.
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PixelPrincess
•Wait I'm confused too - so they tax the first $12k but use all the wages for benefits? That seems weird
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Astrid Bergström
•Yeah it's confusing! The tax limit is what employers pay, but your benefit calculation uses all covered wages. Two different things.
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Omar Farouk
I had a similar situation trying to figure out my wages when I filed. If you're having trouble getting through to NYS Department of Labor to verify which wages count, I used this service called Claimyr that helps you actually reach a real person at the unemployment office. Check out claimyr.com - they have a video demo at https://youtu.be/qyftW-mnTNI that shows how it works. Really helped me get answers about my wage calculation instead of sitting on hold forever.
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Emma Johnson
•Thanks! I'll check that out. I've been trying to call for days and keep getting disconnected.
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Chloe Martin
basically if u get a w2 it counts, if u get 1099 it doesnt... but there are some exceptions like if u were misclassified as contractor when u should have been employee but thats a whole other mess to deal with
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Diego Fernández
•This is exactly why I hate the unemployment system - it's so confusing and they expect regular people to understand all these tax rules!
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Dmitry Popov
One thing that might help you understand this better is to look at your paystubs from your retail job - you should see a line item for "unemployment tax" or "UI tax" being deducted. That's how you know those wages are covered. For your 1099 work and Etsy sales, you wouldn't see those deductions because you're considered self-employed for those. The key distinction is whether you're an employee (W-2) or independent contractor/self-employed (1099). When you file your claim, NYS DOL will verify your covered wages through employer reports, so just be honest about all your income sources and let them sort out what counts.
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Carmen Flores
•That's really helpful about checking the paystubs! I never thought to look for the UI tax line item. Makes it much clearer which jobs actually contribute to the unemployment system. I'm going to dig out my old paystubs now to see exactly what was being deducted.
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