What is partial benefit rate unemployment NYS Department of Labor calculation?
I'm really confused about how partial unemployment benefits work through NYS Department of Labor. I got my hours cut at my retail job from 40 hours to about 15-20 hours per week and someone told me I might qualify for partial benefits. But I have no idea what partial benefit rate means or how they calculate it. Do I still need to file weekly claims? And what's the difference between partial benefits and regular unemployment? I tried looking on the ny.gov website but it's really confusing. Has anyone dealt with this before?
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Nia Harris
Partial unemployment benefits are for people who are working reduced hours but still employed. NYS Department of Labor calculates your partial benefit rate based on your weekly benefit amount minus 25% of your gross wages for that week. So if your weekly benefit amount is $400 and you earn $200 in wages, you'd get $400 - (25% of $200) = $350 in partial benefits. You do need to file weekly claims and report all earnings.
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Luca Russo
•Thank you! So I would still get most of my benefit amount even if I'm working some hours? That actually makes sense now.
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GalaxyGazer
yeah i had this happen to me when covid hit and my restaurant went to takeout only, i was getting like 12 hours instead of 35. you have to be really careful about reporting your wages correctly or they'll hit you with an overpayment later
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Luca Russo
•Did you have any problems with the weekly claims? I'm worried about messing something up.
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GalaxyGazer
•not really just make sure you enter your gross wages before taxes and report any hours you worked, even if you havent been paid yet
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Mateo Sanchez
The key thing to understand is that you need to be available for full-time work to qualify for partial benefits. If NYS Department of Labor thinks you're not genuinely seeking full-time employment, they can disqualify you. Keep applying for other jobs and document your job search activities. Also, if your employer offers you more hours and you refuse them, that could affect your eligibility.
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Aisha Mahmood
•This is so important! I almost lost my benefits because I turned down a shift once when I was sick. Had to explain the whole situation to them.
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Ethan Moore
OMG the NYS Department of Labor system is such a nightmare for this stuff! I've been trying to get through to someone on the phone for WEEKS about my partial benefit calculation because I think they're doing it wrong. The automated system just hangs up on you after waiting forever. How is anyone supposed to get help??
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Yuki Kobayashi
•I had the same problem with getting through to NYS Department of Labor agents. I ended up using this service called Claimyr (claimyr.com) that actually got me connected to someone within a few days. They have a video demo at https://youtu.be/qyftW-mnTNI that shows how it works. Saved me so much frustration - was worth it just to get my questions answered about my adjudication issue.
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Carmen Vega
Just wanted to say hang in there! Partial benefits really helped me when my hours got cut. The important thing is to keep filing every week even if the amount seems small. Better than nothing while you're looking for something full-time.
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Aisha Mahmood
I went through this exact situation last year when my hours got cut at a clothing store. One thing that helped me understand the calculation was to think of it this way: NYS lets you keep 75% of whatever you earn from work, and then gives you the remaining benefit amount. So if you're supposed to get $300/week in unemployment but you earn $100 from your part-time work, you keep $75 of that $100 (the 75%), and they subtract $25 from your $300 benefit, leaving you with $275. It's actually pretty fair once you understand it. Just make sure to certify every week and be honest about your earnings - they will find out if you don't report correctly!
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Ravi Gupta
•This is such a helpful way to think about it! I was getting so stressed about the math but breaking it down like that makes it way clearer. So basically I get to keep most of what I earn from working AND still get most of my unemployment benefit. That actually seems like a good deal while I'm trying to find full-time work again. Thank you for explaining it in simple terms!
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