How long do you have to work somewhere to collect unemployment in Washington?

You need to meet Washington's base period earnings requirements, not just time worked. The base period is typically the first 4 of the last 5 completed calendar quarters before you file. You need at least $5,265 in total wages during your base period AND at least $1,755 in your highest earning quarter.

You don't qualify based on how long you worked at one specific job - it's about your total earnings over what Washington ESD calls the 'base period.' This is usually the first 4 of the last 5 completed calendar quarters before you file. You need to have earned at least $1,019 in your highest-earning quarter AND have total base period earnings of at least 1.5 times your highest quarter earnings.

i think its like 600 hours or something but not sure

I was in a similar situation last year. Had trouble getting through to Washington ESD to ask about my eligibility. Ended up using Claimyr (claimyr.com) to get connected to an actual agent who could look up my wage history. They have a video demo at https://youtu.be/7DieNd3C7zQ that shows how it works. Way easier than trying to call for hours.

Wait, you said you're thinking about quitting? That's going to be a problem for unemployment. Washington ESD usually won't approve benefits if you quit voluntarily unless you can prove it was for 'good cause' - like unsafe working conditions, harassment, or major changes to your job that weren't your fault.

I had a similar situation last year where I needed to check my eligibility but couldn't get through to Washington ESD on the phone. The wait times were insane - like 2+ hours every time I called. I ended up using this service called Claimyr (claimyr.com) that basically calls for you and gets you connected to an actual person. There's a demo video at https://youtu.be/7DieNd3C7zQ that shows how it works. Saved me so much frustration trying to get basic questions answered.

Before you do anything drastic, make sure you understand that quitting makes everything way harder. Even if you have enough work history, proving 'good cause' for quitting is really difficult. Have you looked into whether you could get fired instead? I know that sounds weird but sometimes it's better for unemployment purposes.

The key thing to understand is that Washington uses monetary eligibility, not time-based. If you earned enough wages in your base period (including from other states), you can qualify even with just a few weeks of work. But if you quit voluntarily or get fired for misconduct, you'll be disqualified regardless of your wages.

the base period thing is confusing but basically if you worked full time for 14 months total you should have enough earnings unless you were making really low wages. I think minimum wage in washington is like $16.28 now? so working full time you'd definitely hit the earnings requirements

This whole system is so confusing!! Why can't they just make it simple like 'work 3 months, get benefits' or something? I spent hours trying to figure out my base period when I got laid off.

I'm dealing with something similar right now. Been trying to get through to Washington ESD for weeks to ask about my eligibility after a job change. Finally got connected through that Claimyr service someone mentioned earlier and the agent was super helpful. They explained the base period calculation and even looked up my earnings history to confirm I'd qualify. Way better than trying to figure it out from the website.

Just want to add that even if you qualify based on earnings, quitting without good cause means you'll be disqualified for benefits. And 'toxic work environment' is really hard to prove unless you have documented harassment or safety violations. I learned this the hard way.

Just to add - even if you don't meet the regular base period requirements, Washington has an alternate base period that uses the most recent 4 quarters. Sometimes that can help if your recent wages are higher.

been through this whole mess before and the phone system is IMPOSSIBLE. you call and get hung up on constantly. took me 3 weeks just to talk to someone about my eligibility

The Washington ESD adjudication process for voluntary quits can take forever too. Even if you think you have good cause, they might put your claim on hold for weeks while they investigate. Meanwhile you're not getting any benefits.

Also remember that if you do qualify and file a claim, you'll need to do your weekly claims and job search activities. The work search requirement is 3 contacts per week minimum.

Wait so if I made like $8000 last quarter at my job, would that be enough to qualify? I'm getting confused by all these numbers.

Look, I get that your work situation sucks, but you need to be really strategic here. Start documenting everything NOW - dates, times, what was said, who witnessed it. Try to resolve it through proper channels first. That gives you the best shot at proving good cause if you do end up quitting.

Has anyone mentioned that you can also use the alternate base period if the regular one doesn't work? It's the last 4 completed quarters instead of the first 4 of the last 5. Sometimes that helps if your recent earnings are higher.

THE WHOLE SYSTEM IS RIDICULOUS. I've been trying to get answers about my own claim for MONTHS and Washington ESD just gives you the runaround. You call, wait for hours, get disconnected. You email, no response. The website is useless for anything specific.

The whole base period thing tripped me up too when I first applied. I thought it was just about my current job but they look at a whole year's worth of wages from all your jobs.

For what it's worth, I used Claimyr a few months ago when I was in adjudication hell and it was worth every penny. Got connected to an agent who explained exactly what was happening with my claim and what I needed to do. Sometimes you just need to talk to a real person instead of trying to navigate the system alone.

just to be clear - you need to have worked in washington state for this to count toward washington unemployment right? or does out of state work count too?

I quit my job last year for what I thought was good cause (harassment from my supervisor) and Washington ESD denied my claim. Even though I had some documentation, they said I didn't try hard enough to resolve it internally first. Now I'm dealing with an appeal that's been going on for months.

I tried to apply online but got confused about which quarters to include. The Washington ESD website isn't very clear about how to calculate your base period.

What if you're still technically employed but your hours got cut to almost nothing? Do you still need to meet the same wage requirements?

My sister went through this last year and said the hardest part was actually getting someone at Washington ESD on the phone to ask questions. She eventually found some service that calls for you.

Don't forget that if you get benefits, you'll have to pay taxes on them later. They're considered taxable income.

the system is so broken. took forever to get approved and then they said i owed money back because of some error on their end. still fighting it

Just want to point out that the $5,265 and $1,755 amounts get adjusted annually, so make sure you're looking at current year requirements if you're researching this.

I was worried about this exact thing when I started my job. Turned out I didn't need to worry because my employer was great, but it's smart to know your rights just in case.

One more thing - if you do end up filing a claim, don't wait. File as soon as you become unemployed because there's a one-week waiting period before benefits start, and you can't backdate the claim.

The earnings requirements aren't that hard to meet if you've been working full time. The bigger issue is the voluntary quit thing. Maybe look into whether you could take a leave of absence instead? That might buy you time to figure out your options without losing eligibility.

Quick question - does anyone know if you can apply for unemployment while you're still employed? Like if I want to check my eligibility before actually quitting?

This whole thread is making me anxious about my own job situation. I've been at my current place for 5 months but before that I was unemployed for like 3 months. Does the gap in employment affect eligibility?

My advice: don't quit unless you absolutely have to. Start job hunting while you're still employed. If you find something else, you can leave without worrying about unemployment benefits. If you can't find anything and the job is truly unbearable, at least you'll have documentation and a paper trail showing you tried other options first.

One more thing to consider - even if you qualify for unemployment, the benefit amount might be less than you expect. It's typically about 50% of your average weekly wage, up to a maximum. Make sure you can survive on that amount before you make any big decisions.