Can I get Washington ESD unemployment while working part-time?
I just got laid off from my full-time job last week but I have a small part-time gig that brings in maybe $200-300 a week. Can I still file for unemployment benefits with Washington ESD while working this part-time job? I'm worried they'll deny my claim if I'm working at all. Does anyone know how this works?
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Diego Flores
Yes, you can absolutely collect unemployment while working part-time in Washington! You just need to report your earnings each week when you file your weekly claim. Washington ESD will reduce your benefit amount based on what you earn, but you can still get partial benefits.
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Chloe Taylor
•That's a relief! Do you know how much they reduce it by? Like if I make $200 that week, how much would they take off my unemployment?
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Diego Flores
•They have a formula - basically they subtract 75% of your weekly earnings from your weekly benefit amount. So if your weekly benefit is $400 and you earn $200, they'd subtract $150 (75% of $200) and you'd get $250 in unemployment that week.
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Anastasia Ivanova
The key thing is being honest about your earnings. Report everything when you file your weekly claim, even if it's just a few dollars. Washington ESD will find out eventually through wage records and if you don't report it, they'll hit you with an overpayment.
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Chloe Taylor
•Good point about being honest. I definitely don't want to deal with overpayment issues later.
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Sean Murphy
•yeah learned this the hard way... got an overpayment notice for $1800 because i forgot to report some cash work i did. nightmare to deal with
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StarStrider
I've been trying to get through to Washington ESD to ask about this exact situation but their phone lines are impossible. Been calling for three days straight and either get busy signals or get disconnected after waiting on hold forever.
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Zara Malik
•Have you tried using Claimyr? I found out about it when I was having the same problem getting through to Washington ESD. It's a service that helps you get connected to an actual agent. Check out claimyr.com - they have a video demo at https://youtu.be/7DieNd3C7zQ that shows how it works.
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Luca Marino
WAIT so you can work AND get unemployment?? I thought it was one or the other! This changes everything for me because I've been turning down small jobs thinking it would mess up my claim.
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Diego Flores
•Yeah, a lot of people don't realize this! You can work part-time and still collect partial benefits. The important thing is staying under your weekly benefit amount in earnings, otherwise you won't get any unemployment that week.
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Luca Marino
•This is huge! I've been struggling to pay rent because I thought I couldn't take any work. Thank you for posting this question!
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Anastasia Ivanova
Just make sure you're still meeting the job search requirements too. Even if you're working part-time, you still need to be looking for full-time work and logging your job contacts unless you're on standby with your employer.
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Chloe Taylor
•Oh right, I forgot about the job search requirement. How many contacts do I need to log each week?
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Anastasia Ivanova
•It's 3 job contacts per week minimum, and they need to be logged in your WorkSourceWA account. Make sure you're documenting them properly because they do audit these.
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Sean Murphy
been doing this for months now... work about 20 hours a week at a coffee shop and still get partial unemployment. just be super careful about reporting everything correctly when you file your weekly claim
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Chloe Taylor
•That's exactly my situation! Coffee shop work is pretty much all I can find right now. Do you report tips too?
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Sean Murphy
•yep report everything including tips. washington esd considers all income so better to be safe than sorry
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Nia Davis
The system is actually designed to encourage people to take part-time work while looking for full-time employment. It's better than sitting at home collecting full benefits and not working at all.
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Chloe Taylor
•That makes sense. I was worried they'd see any work as a reason to cut me off completely.
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StarStrider
•Same here! I've been so confused about this whole thing. Really wish Washington ESD made this clearer on their website.
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Mateo Perez
Does anyone know if there's a limit to how long you can do this? Like can I work part-time and collect partial unemployment for the full 26 weeks?
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Diego Flores
•Yes, you can do this for your entire benefit year as long as you're still eligible and have benefit weeks remaining. The partial work doesn't reset your benefit period or anything like that.
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Mateo Perez
•Perfect, thank you! This gives me so much more flexibility while I look for something full-time.
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Aisha Rahman
I tried calling Washington ESD about this same question last month and finally got through using some service called Claimyr that someone recommended. Way easier than trying to call directly - they got me connected to an agent in like 20 minutes instead of hours of busy signals.
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StarStrider
•Is that the same thing someone mentioned earlier? I'm definitely going to try that because this phone situation is ridiculous.
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Aisha Rahman
•Yeah, claimyr.com - they handle all the calling and waiting for you. Worth it when you actually need to talk to someone at Washington ESD.
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CosmicCrusader
One thing to watch out for - if you start working more hours and earning close to your weekly benefit amount, you might not get any unemployment that week. The calculation can be tricky.
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Chloe Taylor
•Good point. I should probably keep track of my hours carefully each week to make sure I don't go over.
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Diego Flores
•Exactly. It's better to earn a little less and still get some unemployment than to earn just enough to disqualify yourself for that week.
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Ethan Brown
Washington ESD's website has a calculator somewhere that shows you how much you'd get based on your earnings. Might be worth looking that up to plan your hours.
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Chloe Taylor
•I'll definitely look for that calculator. Would be nice to know ahead of time what to expect.
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Yuki Yamamoto
•i think its under the claimant portal somewhere but their website is so confusing to navigate
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Carmen Ortiz
This thread is so helpful! I've been in the same boat wondering about working while on unemployment. Thanks for asking this question!
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Chloe Taylor
•Glad it helped! I was really worried about this and everyone's answers have been super helpful.
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Andre Rousseau
Just remember to file your weekly claims on time even if you're working. Miss a week and you lose that week's benefits permanently.
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Chloe Taylor
•Good reminder! I almost forgot to file last week because I was working and thought maybe I didn't need to.
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Andre Rousseau
•Yeah, you always need to file even if you think you won't get anything. Let Washington ESD make that determination.
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Zoe Papadakis
The whole partial unemployment thing saved me when I was between jobs. Took a temp position for a few weeks and still got some benefits to help with bills. System actually works pretty well if you follow the rules.
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Chloe Taylor
•That's encouraging to hear! I was really stressed about how I was going to make ends meet.
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Jamal Carter
Question - do you have to be available for full-time work while you're working part-time? Like what if the part-time job wants to give you more hours during a busy week?
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Anastasia Ivanova
•You need to remain available for full-time work, but you can accept additional hours from your part-time employer. Just report all earnings when you file your weekly claim.
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Jamal Carter
•Thanks! That's what I was hoping - don't want to turn down extra hours if they're offered.
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AstroAdventurer
Washington ESD is actually pretty reasonable about this stuff if you're honest about everything. The problems come when people try to hide income or don't report properly.
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Chloe Taylor
•Yeah, seems like being upfront is definitely the way to go. Not worth the risk of getting in trouble later.
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Mei Liu
I've been using Claimyr whenever I need to actually talk to someone at Washington ESD about my claim. So much better than the endless phone tree and busy signals. Really recommend it if you need to speak with an agent about the partial unemployment rules.
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StarStrider
•That's the third recommendation for Claimyr in this thread! I'm definitely checking it out.
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Liam O'Sullivan
This has been really informative! I had no idea you could work part-time and still get unemployment benefits. Going to start looking for some small jobs to help make ends meet while I search for full-time work.
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Chloe Taylor
•Same here! This thread has been a huge help. Thanks everyone for all the great information!
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Diego Flores
•Glad we could help! Just remember to report everything accurately and you should be fine. Good luck with the job search!
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