How long do you have to work to get unemployment benefits from Washington ESD?

What exactly counts as a quarter? Like 3 months?

Yes, quarters are 3-month periods. Q1 is Jan-Mar, Q2 is Apr-Jun, Q3 is Jul-Sep, Q4 is Oct-Dec. Washington ESD looks at your earnings in these quarters to determine eligibility.

I was making about $15/hour at both jobs, so I think I should hit that $1,000 threshold easily.

That sounds like you'll definitely qualify then. The hardest part might be actually getting through to Washington ESD to file your claim!

Is that legit? I'm always skeptical of services that charge money to help with government stuff.

I was skeptical too at first, but it actually worked. Way better than sitting on hold for hours every day trying to get through to Washington ESD myself.

This is getting confusing. How do I figure out what my base period actually is?

When you file your claim, Washington ESD will tell you what your base period is and whether you qualify. Don't stress too much about calculating it yourself beforehand.

You can also check your quarterly wage statements if you saved them, or log into your Washington ESD account to see your wage history.

That's true. I guess I'm overthinking it.

Definitely file as soon as possible. There's a waiting period anyway, so the sooner you apply, the sooner benefits could start if you qualify.

That's reassuring. I was worried that changing jobs might hurt my chances.

Nah, as long as you were laid off or fired through no fault of your own, job changes don't matter. They just look at your total earnings.

I got laid off because they had to cut staff due to slow business. Not fired for cause or anything like that.

Ok good, that should qualify as 'involuntary separation' which is what you need for unemployment benefits.

I'll look for that, thanks!

Yeah it's under the 'File a Claim' section I think. Pretty helpful for getting an idea of what to expect.

You should file as soon as possible after losing your job. There's no specific deadline, but delays can affect when your benefits start.

I just got laid off yesterday so I'm definitely not waiting around.

What kind of job search requirements?

You have to apply for a certain number of jobs each week and keep records. The exact number depends on your situation, but it's usually at least 3 job applications per week.

And you have to register with WorkSource Washington and be available for work. Can't just collect benefits without actively looking.

That's exactly why I ended up using Claimyr. Couldn't get through to Washington ESD any other way.

What kind of documentation did they want from you?

Pay stubs, separation notice, ID verification... just one thing after another. And their online system crashes constantly.

That gives me hope! I'm going to try filing online tonight.

Good luck! Make sure you have all your employment info handy - dates, employer addresses, reason for separation, etc.

I have pay stubs from my recent job but not sure about the older one. Is that going to be a problem?

you might be able to get wage records from washington esd directly, or contact your old employer for verification if needed

Definitely don't wait any longer! The sooner you file, the sooner you can start receiving benefits if you qualify.

And if you run into issues getting through to Washington ESD, seriously consider using Claimyr. Made the whole process so much less stressful for me.

That's encouraging! I'm definitely going to file my claim tonight and see what happens.

Exactly - don't self-reject before even trying. Let Washington ESD make the determination based on your actual work history.

Thanks everyone for all the helpful advice! This thread has been way more informative than trying to navigate the Washington ESD website on my own.