What is fractional unemployment when filing with NYS Department of Labor?
I keep seeing the term 'fractional unemployment' mentioned in some NYS Department of Labor materials but I'm really confused about what this actually means. Is this something different from regular unemployment benefits? I work part-time hours that vary week to week at a restaurant and sometimes I only get scheduled for like 15 hours when I'm available for full-time. Would this qualify as fractional unemployment or am I thinking about this wrong? I've been filing weekly claims but wondering if I should be doing something different with my application.
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Jayden Hill
Fractional unemployment refers to when you're working reduced hours but still eligible for partial unemployment benefits through NYS Department of Labor. If you're working part-time but available and actively seeking full-time work, you can receive a portion of your weekly benefit amount. The key is that your weekly earnings must be less than your full weekly benefit rate. When you file your weekly claim, you report your exact hours and wages, and the system calculates your partial payment automatically.
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Isabella Tucker
•That makes sense! So I should keep reporting my part-time hours on my weekly claims even if they're different every week?
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LordCommander
Yeah this is super common in restaurant work. I dealt with the same thing when my hours got cut. You basically get unemployment benefits to make up for the lost income from not working full-time. Just make sure you're still doing your job search requirements - you have to prove you're looking for additional work even though you have the part-time job.
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Lucy Lam
•Wait do you still have to do the work search if you already have a job?? That seems weird
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LordCommander
•Yes because you're claiming you're underemployed and seeking full-time work. That's the whole point of fractional unemployment benefits.
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Aidan Hudson
I had such a hard time getting through to NYS Department of Labor when I had questions about this exact situation. The phone lines are always busy and the online chat never works. I ended up using claimyr.com to get connected to an actual agent who explained everything properly. There's a video demo at https://youtu.be/qyftW-mnTNI that shows how it works. Made such a difference to actually talk to someone who could look at my specific case.
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Zoe Wang
•How much does that service cost? I've been trying to call for weeks about my partial benefits
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Aidan Hudson
•It was worth it just to get clear answers instead of guessing. Way less stressful than trying to call myself over and over.
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Connor Richards
The restaurant industry is the WORST for this stuff. They deliberately keep people part-time to avoid benefits and then act like they're doing you a favor. At least NYS Department of Labor recognizes that this is basically partial unemployment. Document everything - your availability, when you ask for more hours, all of it.
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Isabella Tucker
•Should I be keeping records of when I tell my manager I want more hours?
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Grace Durand
just make sure your not working more than like 30 hours or something because then you wont qualify anymore, i think the cutoff is based on how much money you make compared to your benefit amount
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