How long do you have to be working to collect unemployment in Washington?

In Washington state, you need to have earned wages in at least two quarters of your base period to qualify for unemployment benefits. The base period is typically the first four of the last five completed calendar quarters before you file your claim.

i think you need like 680 hours or something like that worked in the past year, but im not 100% sure

I had trouble figuring this out too when I was between jobs. Honestly, calling Washington ESD directly was the only way I got a clear answer about my specific situation. But good luck getting through - I must have called 50 times before someone picked up. Actually, I found this service called Claimyr that helped me get through to an actual person at claimyr.com. They have a video demo at https://youtu.be/7DieNd3C7zQ that shows how it works.

The specific requirements for Washington state unemployment eligibility are: 1) You must have worked in at least two quarters of your base period, 2) You must have earned at least $1,215 in your highest earning quarter, and 3) Your total base period earnings must be at least 1.25 times your high quarter earnings. The base period is usually the first four of the last five completed calendar quarters.

OMG this is so stressful! I've been at my job for 4 months but only part-time. What if I don't make enough money to qualify?? I can't afford to not have unemployment if something happens!

The whole system is ridiculous. You work and pay into unemployment insurance but then they make it impossible to actually qualify when you need it. Two quarters minimum? What about people who just graduated or are new to the workforce?

wait so if i worked at one job for 3 months then switched to another job and worked there for 3 months would that count as two quarters?

Just wanted to follow up on the Claimyr thing I mentioned earlier - I used them again last month when I had questions about my weekly claim filing and it worked great. Really worth it if you're tired of trying to get through to Washington ESD on your own.

I was in a similar boat last year. Had only been working for about 10 weeks when I got laid off. Didn't qualify for regular unemployment but there might be other options depending on your situation. Worth checking into.

One thing to keep in mind is that Washington state also has an alternate base period for people who don't qualify under the standard base period. It uses the four most recently completed quarters instead of the first four of the last five.

this is all so confusing, why cant they just make it simple like 'worked 6 months = qualify' or something

Thanks everyone for all the info! Sounds like I need to wait a bit longer before I'd qualify, but at least now I understand how it works. Hopefully I won't need to find out anytime soon!

I qualified after working just over 6 months but I was working full-time with decent wages. Really depends on how much you're earning, not just the time.

OK I looked up my wages and I think I might actually qualify if I get laid off next month. This thread helped me understand what to look for!

Still think the system could be more straightforward but at least this thread explained it better than the Washington ESD website does.

just went through this whole process myself - the earnings requirement is definitely the tricky part, not the time requirement

One last thing - if anyone does need to contact Washington ESD for personalized information about their eligibility, definitely check out that Claimyr service I mentioned. Saved me so much time and frustration compared to trying to call on my own.

Just to summarize for anyone reading this later: Washington state unemployment eligibility requires working in at least 2 quarters of your base period AND meeting minimum earnings thresholds. It's not just about time worked, but about wages earned during that time.

thanks for all the help everyone, now i know what to expect if anything happens with my job

This has been super helpful. I feel much more confident about understanding unemployment eligibility now. Thanks to everyone who contributed!