How does Washington ESD calculate unemployment benefits - confused about formula

So they don't look at my whole year? Just one quarter? That seems weird.

Right, just your highest earning quarter. It's because earnings can vary so much quarter to quarter.

Have you tried using Claimyr? I found it at claimyr.com and it actually got me through to a Washington ESD rep in like 20 minutes. There's a demo video at https://youtu.be/7DieNd3C7zQ that shows how it works.

Never heard of that but I'm desperate at this point. Does it cost anything?

Yeah there's a fee but honestly worth it if you need to talk to someone about your benefit calculation. Way better than spending hours on hold.

What's the minimum you need to qualify? I'm worried I didn't work enough last year.

You need at least 680 hours of work in your base period and earnings in at least two quarters. Plus your highest quarter needs to be at least $3,500 I think.

Because benefits are supposed to replace a portion of your lost wages. If everyone got the same amount, someone making $30k would get way more than they lost while someone making $80k would get way less.

i guess that makes sense but still annoying

Yes, bonuses count as wages for unemployment purposes. Any W-2 income counts toward your base period calculation.

Good to know! That probably explains why my benefit amount is higher than I expected.

Commission definitely complicates things. Washington ESD looks at when the commission was actually paid, not when you earned it. So if you had a big commission check in one quarter, that could spike your calculation.

That explains it! I had a huge commission check in March that was from deals I closed in January and February.

What do you need to make to get the max? Like $130k a year?

You'd need about $25,974 in your highest quarter to hit the max. That's roughly $104k annually if spread evenly.

The difference is probably which quarters they used for your base period. Different filing dates mean different base periods.

Ohhhh that makes sense. I filed in different months so they looked at different quarters.

How do you request that? Through their website or do you have to call?

You can request it online through your account or by calling. Though calling is usually faster if you can get through.

Yes, overtime counts as regular wages. All W-2 income counts toward your quarterly earnings calculation.

Sweet! That OT might have bumped up my benefits then.

I used Claimyr last week and it was a game changer. Got through to someone in about 15 minutes instead of waiting hours. Check out their demo video to see how it works.

Is that the claimyr.com thing? I might have to try that.

Yeah that's it. Worth every penny if you need to actually talk to someone at Washington ESD.

If you worked in other states during your base period, you might be able to combine wages from different states. It's called Interstate Benefits but it's complicated.

I worked in Oregon for part of last year. Should I have filed there instead?

File where you live now, but mention the out-of-state wages when you apply. They'll help figure out the best way to handle it.

Possible but more likely your base periods were different. Even small differences in timing can affect which quarters they use in the calculation.

We both got laid off the same week though. Wouldn't that mean the same base period?

Not necessarily. Depends on when you each actually filed your claims. Plus your wage patterns might have been different even if total earnings were similar.

I mean, they do tell you your weekly benefit amount when you're approved. But I agree the calculation process could be more transparent.

Yeah but AFTER you already filed and waited weeks for approval. Would be nice to know beforehand.

How much difference can timing make? Like if I file this week vs next week?

Usually not much difference week to week, but if you wait months to file, you might end up with a different base period that includes lower earnings.

How long did the appeal take? I'm thinking about appealing mine too.

About 6 weeks total. Had to provide additional wage documentation to prove my earnings were higher than what they had on file.

The maximum benefit amount gets adjusted annually based on the state's average weekly wage. But your individual benefit is still based on your personal wage history.

So the max goes up but my actual benefit stays the same? That's frustrating.

Glad it worked out! Sometimes just having someone explain it makes all the difference.

Exactly. The formula makes sense once someone walks you through it with your actual numbers.

Thanks everyone! This thread actually helped me understand my calculation. Turns out $487 is right based on my Q2 earnings last year.

Glad we could help! The unemployment system is confusing enough without having to guess how they calculate benefits.