How long do you have to be employed to get unemployment benefits in Washington state?

It's not about how long you worked at one specific job - Washington ESD looks at your total earnings over what they call the 'base period.' This is usually the first four of the last five completed calendar quarters before you file your claim. You need to have earned at least $1,000 in your base period to qualify.

Just to add to what was said above - there's also a requirement that you worked in at least two quarters of your base period. So you can't just have worked one really good quarter and then nothing else.

I was in a similar situation last year - had three different jobs in 2024 and was worried about qualifying. The Washington ESD system automatically calculates your base period when you apply online. If you're close to the minimum, I'd recommend using Claimyr to get through to an actual agent who can review your work history. Their service at claimyr.com helped me get connected without waiting on hold for hours.

WAIT A MINUTE. I've been working for 6 months and they DENIED my claim saying I didn't work long enough. What the hell? I made way more than $1000 in the last year. This is so frustrating!

The base period thing can be confusing. If you filed in January 2025, your base period would be January 2024 through December 2024. But if you mostly worked in late 2024, you might want to wait and file later to include more recent wages in your base period.

i worked at walmart for 4 months then target for 3 months and now im at mcdonalds for 2 months but got fired for being late too much. do i qualify??

Just went through this process myself! The key thing is having qualifying wages in your base period. For me, I had worked at two different companies - one for 5 months and another for 7 months - and qualified without any issues. The online application walks you through everything.

One more thing - if you're unsure about your eligibility, you can always call Washington ESD to ask them to review your work history before you apply. Though getting through can be tough. I ended up using that Claimyr service I mentioned earlier when I needed to talk to someone urgently about my claim status.

Been unemployed 3 times in the last 5 years and each time I qualified with different job patterns. Once I had worked 18 months at one place, another time I had 4 different jobs over 2 years. As long as you hit the wage requirements, you're probably fine.

Just to summarize for anyone reading this thread: You need at least $1,000 in wages during your base period (first 4 of the last 5 completed quarters), and you need to have worked in at least two quarters of that base period. Job hopping doesn't disqualify you as long as you meet these wage requirements.

Also remember that if you don't qualify under the regular base period, Washington ESD can sometimes use an alternate base period (the last 4 completed quarters) if that would make you eligible. They'll automatically check this for you.

word of advice - apply online through the Washington ESD website rather than trying to call unless you absolutely have to. the online system is way faster and you can track your application status

I had a weird situation where I worked as a contractor for part of the year and as an employee for part of the year. The contractor work didn't count toward my unemployment eligibility, only the W-2 wages. Just something to keep in mind if you had any 1099 work.

The amount you get each week is based on your wages during the base period too, not just eligibility. So even if you qualify, having higher wages during that time means a higher weekly benefit amount.

Just applied last week and got approved! Had worked at 3 different jobs over the past 18 months. The online application was pretty straightforward - just needed my SSN, employer info, and dates of employment. Took about 30 minutes to complete.

One last thing - make sure you have accurate information about your previous employers including their addresses and phone numbers. Washington ESD sometimes contacts employers to verify employment, so having wrong info can delay your claim.

Thanks everyone for all the helpful info in this thread! I was stressing about the same question and now I feel much better about applying. Going to submit my application this weekend.

For anyone still worried about qualifying - I've helped several friends navigate this process and the $1,000 minimum is pretty easy to hit if you've been working regularly. Even part-time work for several months usually gets you there.

Final tip from someone who's been through this multiple times - if you get denied for any reason, don't panic. You have 30 days to appeal and the appeals process is pretty fair. Sometimes the initial decision is wrong due to incomplete information.

This has been such a helpful thread! I learned way more here than I did trying to navigate the Washington ESD website on my own. Going to bookmark this for future reference.