How to calculate rate of unemployment for NYS Department of Labor weekly claim certification?
I'm filling out my weekly claim certification and there's a section asking about calculating my unemployment rate or something like that. I've been getting partial benefits because I'm working part-time (about 15 hours a week) and I think I need to figure out some kind of calculation for the NYS Department of Labor system. My benefit rate is $405 per week but I'm making about $240 from my part-time job. Is there a specific formula I need to use when I certify each week? I don't want to mess this up and cause issues with my claim status.
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Yara Khoury
You don't calculate the unemployment rate yourself - the NYS Department of Labor system does that automatically when you report your earnings. Just report your gross earnings for the week accurately and they'll apply the partial benefit formula. For every dollar you earn over $143, they reduce your benefit by 25 cents. So if you earned $240, that's $97 over the threshold, which means they'll reduce your $405 benefit by about $24.
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AstroAlpha
•Oh that makes sense! So I just need to report my exact earnings and let their system handle the math?
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Keisha Taylor
yeah just put in what you made, the computer does all the calculating for you. been doing partial claims for months and never had to do any math myself
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Paolo Longo
The key thing is accuracy in reporting your gross wages. Don't try to calculate your own unemployment rate - that's handled automatically by the NYS Department of Labor when you submit your weekly certification. Make sure you're reporting before taxes and deductions. If you're consistently working part-time, you might also want to look into the work search requirements since they may be different for partial claimants.
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Amina Bah
•Wait, work search requirements are different for partial claims? I've been doing the full 3 job contacts per week even though I'm working part-time.
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Paolo Longo
•If you're working part-time and getting partial benefits, you may only need 1 work search contact per week instead of 3. Check your claimant handbook or call NYS Department of Labor to confirm your specific requirements.
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Oliver Becker
This is exactly why the unemployment system is so confusing! They use all these technical terms but don't explain what they actually mean. I spent weeks thinking I had to calculate something myself before realizing the system does it automatically. The NYS Department of Labor really needs better instructions on their website.
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CosmicCowboy
•If you're having trouble reaching someone at NYS Department of Labor to clarify these kinds of questions, I had good luck using claimyr.com - it's a service that helps you get through to an actual agent without waiting on hold forever. They have a video demo at https://youtu.be/qyftW-mnTNI that shows how it works. Really helped when I needed to verify my partial benefit calculations were correct.
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Natasha Orlova
Just went through this same confusion last month! The weekly certification form is asking for your GROSS earnings, not asking you to calculate any rates. Report exactly what you earned before taxes and the NYS Department of Labor system automatically applies their partial benefit formula. Don't overthink it - just be honest about your earnings and let the system do the work.
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