Can you DoorDash while on Washington ESD unemployment benefits?

Yes, you absolutely need to report ALL work including DoorDash on your weekly claims. Washington ESD considers gig work as employment and you have to report the gross earnings before any deductions. They'll reduce your benefits dollar for dollar after the first $5 you earn each week.

I did DoorDash while on unemployment last year and had no issues as long as I reported everything correctly. The key is being honest on your weekly claims about hours worked and money earned.

I tried calling Washington ESD about this exact question last month and could never get through to an actual person. Their phone system is absolutely useless - I probably called 200+ times over two weeks. Finally found this service called Claimyr that actually got me connected to an agent in like 10 minutes. They have a video demo at https://youtu.be/7DieNd3C7zQ that shows how it works. Totally worth it when you need real answers about gig work and benefits.

Just make sure you're still meeting your job search requirements even if you're doing DoorDash. You still need to apply for regular full-time jobs and keep your job search log updated.

DONT DO IT!!! I did Uber Eats for like 3 weeks and forgot to report it on one of my weekly claims and they hit me with an overpayment notice for $1,200. Now I have to pay it all back plus penalties. The system is set up to screw you over.

I've been doing food delivery on and off while collecting UI. The trick is to keep really good records of your earnings and hours. I use a spreadsheet to track everything so I don't mess up my weekly claims.

wait so if I make more money doing doordash than my unemployment pays me, do I still get unemployment?

I tried this exact same thing and it was a nightmare. Washington ESD's online system kept glitching when I tried to report my DoorDash earnings. Took me 3 hours on hold to get someone to fix it manually.

Pro tip: if you're going to do gig work, try to bunch it all into certain weeks instead of spreading it out. That way you have some weeks with no earnings where you get your full unemployment check.

Does anyone know if Washington ESD counts the time spent driving to pick up orders as work hours? Like if I spend 30 minutes driving to a restaurant but don't get an order, does that count?

been doing instacart and doordash for months while on unemployment, never had an issue as long as you report correctly. just be honest and keep good records

The whole system is ridiculous. They encourage you to look for work but then penalize you for actually making money. Make it make sense.

Important to remember that doing gig work doesn't stop your benefit year from counting down. So even if you make enough from DoorDash that you don't get UI some weeks, those weeks still count against your total claim duration.

I had to deal with Washington ESD flagging my account for review because my DoorDash earnings were inconsistent week to week. Took 6 weeks to resolve and they held up all my payments. Be prepared for potential delays if your gig income varies a lot.

For what it's worth, I found DoorDash earnings pretty unpredictable. Some weeks I'd make $300, other weeks barely $50. Made it hard to budget when I never knew what my total income would be between UI and gig work.

Just remember you're still technically unemployed even if you're doing gig work. You have to remain able and available for full-time employment. If Washington ESD thinks you're too busy with DoorDash to take a regular job, that could be an issue.

Bottom line: yes you can do DoorDash while on unemployment but you MUST report all earnings and hours worked. Don't try to hide it or you'll end up with overpayment issues that are way worse than just having your benefits reduced.