NY unemployment partial benefits question - claiming 4 days but received nothing
I'm really confused about partial unemployment in NY. Last week I claimed 4 days of work (was scheduled all week but only worked 4 days). I didn't receive ANY benefits. Nothing!! I thought if you work part-time you still get something?? Now I'm wondering about next week too - my boss has me scheduled for the whole week but I'll probably only work 3-4 days again. How do I fix this so I actually get some benefits? Does claiming 4 days automatically disqualify you completely? I need to know how to report this correctly!
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AstroAdventurer
For NY unemployment, if you work 4 days in a week (regardless of hours), you don't qualify for ANY benefits for that week. The system works like this: - Work 0 days = full weekly benefit - Work 1 day = 75% of weekly benefit - Work 2 days = 50% of weekly benefit - Work 3 days = 25% of weekly benefit - Work 4+ days = 0% benefit So yes, working 4 days automatically disqualified you. Nothing to fix - that's just how the NY system works.
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Jamal Carter
•Seriously??? That's so frustrating! So even if I only work like 4 hours each day (16 hours total for the week), I get NOTHING? That seems really unfair compared to someone who works 3 full 8-hour days (24 hours).
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Mei Liu
yup thats how it works. days not hours. its stupid. i learned this the hard way last year.
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Liam O'Sullivan
The previous responses are correct. NY unemployment counts DAYS worked, not hours. This is different than many other states. If you work 4 or more days, regardless of hours, you get $0 for that week. For next week, if you're scheduled for the full week but only end up working 3 days, make sure you certify accurately - report the 3 days worked and you should receive 25% of your weekly benefit amount.
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Jamal Carter
•Thank you for confirming. Do you know if there's any way I can talk to someone at unemployment about this? I've been trying to call for days but can't get through to anyone.
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Amara Chukwu
•I was in the same boat last month - couldn't get through to anyone at NYSDOL for weeks! I finally used Claimyr (claimyr.com) and got through to an agent in about 20 minutes. They have a video showing how it works: https://youtu.be/Rdqa1gKtxuE The agent explained to me that the 4-day rule is strict in NY and there's no workaround. Even 4 one-hour shifts equals zero benefits. Totally unfair system but at least I understood why my payments stopped.
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Giovanni Conti
THIS SYSTEM IS GARBAGE! I went through the same thing in 2025. Worked 4 short shifts (like 3-4 hours each) and got ZERO BENEFIT! Meanwhile my roommate worked 3 full 8-hour days (WAY more hours than me) and still got 25% of his benefit. Makes absolutely NO sense!
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Mei Liu
•the whole ny system is broken. been that way forever and they don't care to fix it.
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Fatima Al-Hashimi
The NY unemployment system counts days not hours which is stupid but that's how it is. If your boss is giving you partial hours try to see if you can condense your work schedule to only 3 days if possible? That way at least you'd get 25% of your benefit amount.
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Jamal Carter
•That's actually a really good idea. I'm going to see if my manager will let me work 3 longer days instead of 4 shorter ones. Thank you!
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NeonNova
Everyone is giving you correct info about the 4-day rule. I just wanted to add that you need to make sure you're still certifying every week even if you think you won't get paid. Missing weeks of certification can cause problems with your claim later. Keep certifying accurately - reporting all days worked - even if you know you'll get $0 for some weeks.
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Mei Liu
wait does anyone know if they count days you wer supposed to work but called out sick? my schedule said 5 days but i only worked 3 and called out 2 days last week
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Liam O'Sullivan
•You only report days you actually worked. If you were scheduled for 5 days but only worked 3 days (regardless of why you missed the other 2), you would report 3 days worked when certifying. This would qualify you for 25% of your weekly benefit.
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Jamal Carter
Thank you everyone for the helpful responses! I'm going to talk to my manager about possibly condensing my schedule to 3 days when possible. And I'll definitely keep certifying every week even when I work 4 days. I appreciate all the advice!
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