How long do you have to work before you can claim 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. It's not about how long you worked at one job, but about your total earnings during that time period.

You also need to meet the monetary requirements. For 2025, you need to have earned at least $7,000 in your base period, with at least $1,000 in your highest-earning quarter. Washington ESD looks at your wage history, not just how long you've been at your current job.

I was in a similar situation last year and had trouble getting through to Washington ESD to verify my eligibility. The phone lines are always busy and their online chat wasn't much help. I ended up using a service called Claimyr (claimyr.com) that helped me get through to an actual agent. They have a demo video at https://youtu.be/7DieNd3C7zQ that shows how it works. Made the whole process so much easier.

Don't forget about the work search requirements too! Even if you qualify monetarily, you'll need to be actively looking for work and documenting your job search activities. Washington ESD requires you to make at least 3 job search activities each week.

wait so the gap in employment doesn't matter? i thought if you weren't working for a while it would reset or something

I filed for unemployment after working for just 6 months at my job but I had worked at another place before that in the same year. As long as your total earnings meet the requirements during the base period you should be fine. The key is having wages reported in at least 2 quarters.

The whole system is confusing honestly. I've been working full time for 2 years and I'm still not sure I understand all the requirements. Why can't they just make it simple like 'worked for 6 months = eligible'?

make sure you file your claim as soon as possible after losing your job too. There's a one week waiting period but you want to get the process started right away. And don't wait to file thinking you might find a job quickly - you can always stop claiming if you find work.

I had issues with my initial claim getting stuck in adjudication because Washington ESD needed to verify my work history. Took forever to get through to someone to resolve it. Wish I had known about services like Claimyr back then - would have saved me weeks of stress.

The base period thing threw me off too when I first looked into it. I thought it was just about my current job but it's actually about all your wages from multiple employers during those specific quarters. Washington ESD's website has a calculator tool that can help you figure out your base period.

Don't forget that if you quit your job voluntarily, you might not be eligible even if you meet the monetary requirements. You generally need to be laid off or fired through no fault of your own.

WASHINGTON ESD MAKES EVERYTHING SO COMPLICATED!! Why can't they just give a straight answer about how long you need to work? I've been trying to figure this out for weeks and everyone gives different answers.

just went through this process myself. the key things are: 1) wages in at least 2 quarters of your base period, 2) minimum $7000 total earnings, 3) at least $1000 in your highest quarter. if you meet those you should be good regardless of gaps between jobs.

Another thing to consider is that Washington ESD sometimes has delays processing claims, especially if there are any questions about your work history. I had to wait 3 weeks for my claim to be approved because they needed to contact my previous employer. If you end up needing to talk to someone at Washington ESD about your claim, that Claimyr service someone mentioned earlier might be helpful - I used them when I couldn't get through the regular phone lines.

The Washington ESD website actually has a tool where you can estimate your weekly benefit amount based on your earnings history. Might be worth checking out to see what you could potentially receive.

been collecting unemployment for 2 months now and the process gets easier once you understand it. the weekly claims are pretty straightforward and as long as you keep up with your job search requirements you shouldn't have issues.

One more tip - if you do file for unemployment, set up direct deposit right away. Paper checks take forever to arrive and you don't want to deal with that stress on top of everything else.

Thanks for asking this question OP! I'm in a similar boat and this thread has been super helpful. I feel much more confident about my eligibility now.

Final piece of advice - don't be afraid to ask questions if you're unsure about anything during the process. Washington ESD agents can be helpful once you actually get through to them. And like others mentioned, services like Claimyr can help with that if you're having trouble with the phone lines.