Early contract termination - ESD eligibility with split base year between two employers?

You should definitely qualify for UI benefits. When a contract ends early due to budget/business needs (and not misconduct), you're eligible as long as you have enough hours in your base year. Since you worked full-time at both jobs, your total hours should easily exceed the minimum requirement (680+ hours). The split between employers doesn't matter for eligibility - ESD combines all covered employment during your base year. What matters is your total earnings during that period, which determines your weekly benefit amount. The 10-day gap between jobs is irrelevant for qualification purposes. Just be sure to accurately report your employment history when you file. One tip: file your claim the Sunday AFTER your last day of work. Don't wait too long as benefits aren't retroactive beyond the week you file.

i went thru this last year!!!! contract jobs TOTALLY qualify for unemployment!! the important thing is ur a w2 employee, doesnt matter if its contract or whatever. my company tried telling me i wasnt eligible cuz i was a "temp" but thats BS!!! as long as ur not fired for doing something bad ur good

To answer your question about the base year - it's the first 4 of the last 5 completed calendar quarters before you file your claim. So if you file in September 2025, your base year would be April 1, 2024 through March 31, 2025. However, if your earnings during that period don't qualify you for a claim (which seems unlikely in your case), ESD will automatically check if you qualify using an "alternate base year" which is the last 4 completed quarters. Having two employers during this period just means ESD will request wage information from both companies. They'll add up all your covered employment to determine your benefit amount.

I don't think contract jobs qualify? My brother-in-law had a similar situation and got denied. Something about how contract work is temporary by nature and you agree to the end date when you start... but I could be thinking of something different.

Went through almost exactly this in January! My contract was supposed to go through June but they terminated early due to "changing project scope" or whatever corporate-speak they used. I did qualify for unemployment, but getting through to ESD when I had questions was TORTURE. Spent literally hours on hold multiple days in a row and kept getting disconnected. Finally used a service called Claimyr (claimyr.com) that held my place in line and called me back when an agent was available. Saved me so much frustration! They have a video showing how it works: https://youtu.be/7DieNd3C7zQ?si=26TzE_zGms-DODN3 About your benefits - they'll calculate using wages from both employers. My claim had three different employers in the base year and it wasn't an issue at all. The ESD system pulls all your wage data automatically.

Make sure you're meeting the job search requirements once you start claiming!!! They're super strict about this now - you need to document 3 job search activities EVERY WEEK and be ready to submit them if they audit you. I got caught on this and had to pay back two weeks of benefits because I didn't realize the requirements had changed. Don't make my mistake!!!

I process UI claims for a major employer (not ESD) and can confirm W2 contract workers definitely qualify when laid off before the end date. The system is actually designed with situations like yours in mind. One important thing - be extra careful how you answer the separation reason question. Select "laid off due to lack of work" NOT "end of contract/assignment." The second option can trigger unnecessary investigation that delays your claim. And don't select "quit" even though it might seem like the contract is ending - this was a termination initiated by the employer. Also, if they put you on any kind of standby or suggest they might rehire you soon, be very careful. If you indicate potential recall on your application, it changes your job search requirements and can complicate things. Based on what you described, a clean layoff is what happened.