Why is unemployment benefits so low in NYS Department of Labor system?
I just got approved for unemployment after being laid off from my warehouse job and I'm only getting $204 a week. This doesn't even cover my rent let alone groceries and bills. I was making $16/hour full time before this happened. Is this normal? How do they calculate these benefit amounts? I thought unemployment was supposed to help you survive while looking for work but this amount is impossible to live on. Did I do something wrong when I filed my claim?
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CosmicCommander
The NYS Department of Labor calculates your weekly benefit amount based on your earnings during what they call the 'base period' - usually the first 4 of the last 5 completed calendar quarters before you filed. You get roughly 50% of your average weekly wage up to the maximum benefit amount. For 2025, the max weekly benefit is $504. If you were making $16/hour full time, that's about $640/week gross, so 50% would be around $320. Something seems off with your calculation at $204.
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Oliver Zimmermann
•That's what I thought too! I definitely made more than what they're using to calculate this. Should I contact them to review my wages?
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Natasha Volkova
same thing happened to me last year... turned out they were only counting wages from one employer even though I had two jobs during the base period. you need to make sure ALL your wages are included in the calculation
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Oliver Zimmermann
•How did you get them to fix it? I tried calling but can never get through.
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Natasha Volkova
•honestly I used this service called Claimyr that got me through to an actual agent. check out claimyr.com - they have a video demo at https://youtu.be/qyftW-mnTNI that shows how it works. way easier than trying to call yourself
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Javier Torres
You should request a monetary determination review if you believe your benefit amount is incorrect. The NYS Department of Labor will recalculate using all reported wages from all employers during your base period. Also check that you didn't have any gaps in employment that might have affected which quarters they used for the calculation.
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Emma Davis
•How long does a monetary determination review take? I'm already struggling with what they gave me.
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Malik Johnson
The whole system is rigged against working people! They make it nearly impossible to survive on these payments while CEOs get million dollar bonuses. And don't even get me started on how long it takes to actually GET the money...
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Isabella Ferreira
•I feel you but complaining won't fix the benefit calculation. OP needs to focus on getting their wages reviewed properly.
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Ravi Sharma
yeah mine was low too when i first got it but then they found missing wages and it went up to like $380/week so definitely worth checking
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