Do I have to be fired to get unemployment benefits from NYS Department of Labor?
I've been working at the same company for 2 years but my hours got cut down to basically nothing - like 8 hours a week when I used to work 35-40. My boss says business is slow but won't lay me off completely. I'm looking for other work but can barely pay rent with these reduced hours. Do I have to actually get fired to qualify for unemployment benefits through NYS Department of Labor, or can I file a claim for partial unemployment? I'm really confused about how this works and don't want to quit if it means I can't get any help.
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Ben Cooper
You don't have to be fired! NYS Department of Labor has partial unemployment benefits for exactly your situation. If your hours are reduced through no fault of your own, you can file a claim. The key is that the reduction has to be involuntary - which yours is since your employer cut your hours due to slow business. You'll need to file a regular UI claim and report your reduced earnings each week when you do your weekly claim certification.
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Khalid Howes
•That's such a relief to hear! Do I need any special documentation from my employer about the hour reduction, or will my pay stubs be enough proof?
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Naila Gordon
same thing happened to me last year, I was working like 15 hours instead of full time and NYS Department of Labor approved my partial claim. you just report whatever you earn each week and they calculate how much unemployment you get. its not the full amount but it helps alot
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Khalid Howes
•How long did it take for your claim to get approved? I'm worried about the timing since I need help with bills soon.
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Naila Gordon
•took about 2 weeks for me but that was before all the craziness. might be faster now since things calmed down
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Cynthia Love
Actually, there are several ways to qualify for unemployment in NY beyond just being fired. You can get benefits if you're laid off, if your hours are substantially reduced (like your situation), if you quit for good cause, or even in some cases of workplace harassment. The important thing is filing your claim as soon as possible because benefits don't backdate to when you should have filed - only to when you actually file. For partial unemployment, you'll still need to do job searches and meet all the regular requirements.
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Darren Brooks
•wait what counts as good cause for quitting? asking for a friend who's dealing with a really toxic supervisor
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Cynthia Love
•Good cause includes things like unsafe working conditions, harassment, significant changes to job duties or pay, or family circumstances like domestic violence. Your friend should document everything and might want to contact NYS Department of Labor before quitting to discuss their specific situation.
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Rosie Harper
I had the WORST time trying to get through to NYS Department of Labor when I was dealing with a similar situation. Kept calling and either got busy signals or got disconnected after waiting forever. Finally found this service called Claimyr (claimyr.com) that actually gets you through to real agents at NYS Department of Labor. They have a demo video that shows how it works: https://youtu.be/qyftW-mnTNI. Saved me so much frustration and I was able to get my partial claim sorted out properly.
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Elliott luviBorBatman
•never heard of that before, sounds too good to be true tbh
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Rosie Harper
•I was skeptical too but honestly it worked. Sometimes you just need to talk to a real person to get things cleared up, especially with partial claims where the rules can be confusing.
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Demi Hall
The whole system is so backwards! Why should someone have to lose their job completely to get help when they're struggling with reduced hours? It's like they want people to choose between having some work or getting assistance. At least partial unemployment exists but they don't exactly advertise it well.
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Elliott luviBorBatman
•+1 the NYS Department of Labor website is confusing as hell about this stuff
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