How to handle PA UC partial claim when alternating between full and reduced hours?
Hey everyone, I'm in a weird situation with my partial UC claim. My employer has me working full hours one week, then reduced hours the next week, back and forth. I'm confused about how to handle this with my weekly claims. Do I still need to file for the weeks I work full hours even though I know I won't get benefits? Or do I just skip filing those weeks and only claim the weeks where I have reduced hours? I don't want to mess anything up or have my claim get suspended for not filing properly. This alternating schedule is supposed to continue for at least the next two months. Thanks for any help!
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Nia Jackson
You need to file for EVERY week, including the weeks you work full-time. When you report your full hours and earnings for those weeks, the system will determine you're not eligible for benefits for that specific week, but your claim stays active. If you skip weeks, the system might think you've stopped claiming and could deactivate your claim entirely. Then you'd have to reopen it, which is a headache.
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Luca Romano
•Thanks for the info! So even though I won't get any money for the full-time weeks, I still need to go through the whole filing process? That seems like extra work for nothing, but I definitely don't want my claim deactivated.
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NebulaNova
I went thru the same thing last yr! File every week no matter what. On weeks u work full time just report all ur hours honestly & the system shows u get $0 for that week but keeps ur claim going. Then next week when ur hours r low again u'll get paid. Don't skip weeks!!!
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Luca Romano
•Thanks for sharing your experience! It's good to know that the system will just show $0 for those weeks but keep my claim active. That makes me feel better about the whole situation.
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Mateo Hernandez
I DID THIS WRONG once and it was a NIGHTMARE!!!! I skipped filing the full-time weeks and my claim got deactivated. Had to call like 50 times to get through to someone to fix it. The PA UC phone system is impossible to get through. Just file every single week and be honest about your hours/earnings. Trust me on this one.
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Aisha Khan
•If anyone is having trouble reaching PA UC by phone, I recently used a service called Claimyr that helped me get through to an agent in under 20 minutes after trying for days on my own. Their website is claimyr.com and they have a video showing how it works: https://youtu.be/CEPETxZdo9E?si=WL1ZzVZWG3KiHrg2. It was a lifesaver when I needed to resolve an issue with my partial claim that couldn't be fixed online.
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Ethan Taylor
The PA UC system is designed to handle partial claims with fluctuating hours. As others have said, you must file every week to maintain your claim. The system calculates your partial benefit by taking 30% of your weekly benefit rate and subtracting it from your weekly benefit rate. Any earnings above that 30% threshold reduce your benefit dollar for dollar. When you report full-time hours, you'll receive $0 but your claim remains active. This is standard procedure for partial benefits in Pennsylvania.
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Luca Romano
•Thanks for the detailed explanation! I didn't know about the 30% calculation. So basically as long as I keep filing every week and reporting my hours accurately, the system will handle everything correctly? That's a relief.
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Yuki Ito
wait is this the same as partial benefits? my cousin was on that and i think she just claimed every week even if she made too much money for benefits that week. seems like a waste of time but thats how the system works i guess lol
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Ethan Taylor
•Yes, this is exactly how partial benefits work. Your cousin was doing it correctly. The system needs weekly certifications to track employment status, even for weeks with no payment. It's administrative overhead, but necessary for the program's integrity.
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Carmen Lopez
I'm in the exact same boat right now! Working one week on, one week reduced hours. Been filing every single week like clockwork and it's working fine. One thing to watch out for - make sure you're still doing your work search activities even on the full-time weeks. I nearly got flagged for missing those. The UC system is super picky about maintaining those job search records for every week you file, even when you know you won't get paid that week.
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Luca Romano
•Oh wow, I didn't even think about the work search requirements for the full-time weeks! That's a really good point. I'll make sure to keep up with those too. Do you just do the minimum (applying to 2 jobs and 1 work search activity) for those weeks?
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Carmen Lopez
•Yep, I just do the minimum for those weeks - 2 job applications and 1 work search activity. It feels silly since I'm already working full-time that week, but better safe than sorry! Just keep a good record of everything so you have it if they ever audit you.
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NebulaNova
my friend told me u can skip the weeks u work full time but i guess shes wrong based on everyones comments here. good thing u asked!
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Nia Jackson
•Your friend is definitely wrong about this. Skipping weeks can cause your claim to be deactivated, and then you have to go through the whole process of reopening it. Always file every week if you want to maintain an active claim, regardless of whether you expect to receive benefits for that week.
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Ethan Taylor
To summarize what everyone has said: 1. File every week, including full-time weeks 2. Report all hours and earnings accurately 3. Continue work search activities every week 4. Keep good records of everything 5. For weeks with full-time work, you'll see $0 benefit but your claim stays active 6. For reduced-hour weeks, you'll receive partial benefits based on the formula This is the correct way to handle alternating schedules on a partial UC claim in Pennsylvania.
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Luca Romano
•Thank you so much for this clear summary! I feel much more confident about how to handle my situation now. I'll start filing every week and make sure to keep up with the work search activities too. Really appreciate everyone's help with this!
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