How long is a quarter for unemployment benefits calculation in Washington ESD?
I'm trying to figure out my base period for my Washington ESD unemployment claim and keep seeing references to 'quarters' but I'm not sure exactly how long each quarter is. Is it 3 months? And which quarters do they use to calculate my weekly benefit amount? I worked different jobs throughout last year so I want to make sure I understand how they're looking at my earnings.
56 comments
Join the conversation
Louisa Ramirez
A quarter for unemployment purposes is 3 months. There are 4 quarters in a year: Q1 (Jan-Mar), Q2 (Apr-Jun), Q3 (Jul-Sep), and Q4 (Oct-Dec). Washington ESD uses your earnings from 4 quarters to calculate your weekly benefit amount.
0 coins
Marilyn Dixon
•Thanks! So if I filed in January 2025, which 4 quarters would they look at?
0 coins
Louisa Ramirez
•They'd use your base period which is typically the first 4 of the last 5 completed quarters before you filed. So probably Q1 2024 through Q4 2024.
0 coins
TommyKapitz
yeah its 3 months but figuring out which quarters they actually use is confusing as hell, took me forever to understand why my benefit amount seemed wrong
0 coins
Marilyn Dixon
•That's exactly what I'm worried about! Did you end up getting it sorted out?
0 coins
TommyKapitz
•eventually but had to call them like 10 times to get someone who could explain it properly
0 coins
Angel Campbell
If you're having trouble reaching Washington ESD by phone, I had good luck using Claimyr (claimyr.com). They help you get through to an actual agent instead of sitting on hold forever. There's a demo video at https://youtu.be/7DieNd3C7zQ that shows how it works.
0 coins
Marilyn Dixon
•Never heard of that service before. Does it actually work for getting through to Washington ESD?
0 coins
Angel Campbell
•Yeah, I was skeptical too but it saved me hours of calling. Especially useful when you need to clarify things like base period calculations.
0 coins
Payton Black
•Interesting, might have to check that out. I've been trying to reach them for weeks about my claim.
0 coins
Harold Oh
The base period quarters thing is one of the most confusing parts of the whole unemployment system. Washington ESD looks at your wages from 4 specific quarters, but they don't always use the most recent ones. Sometimes they use an alternate base period if you don't qualify with the standard one.
0 coins
Marilyn Dixon
•What's an alternate base period? How would I know if they're using that instead?
0 coins
Harold Oh
•Alternate base period uses the 4 most recently completed quarters instead of the standard base period. They'll automatically check this if you don't qualify initially.
0 coins
Amun-Ra Azra
•This is why I hate dealing with government agencies. Why can't they just use the last 12 months like normal people would expect?
0 coins
Summer Green
I'm in the same boat trying to figure this out. Filed my claim last week and I'm worried because I changed jobs mid-year and had a period where I wasn't working. Will that affect which quarters they use?
0 coins
Louisa Ramirez
•Gaps in employment don't change which quarters they look at, but they might affect your total wages in those quarters. As long as you have enough wages in your base period, you should be fine.
0 coins
Summer Green
•That's reassuring, thanks. I just want to make sure I get the right benefit amount.
0 coins
Gael Robinson
Pro tip: you can actually see which quarters Washington ESD is using for your claim in your online account. Look for the 'monetary determination' section once your claim is processed.
0 coins
Marilyn Dixon
•Good to know! I'll keep an eye out for that when my claim gets processed.
0 coins
Edward McBride
•Wish I had known this earlier. I spent so much time trying to calculate it myself when I could have just waited to see it in my account.
0 coins
Darcy Moore
The quarter system made sense once I realized it's based on when employers report wages to the state. Employers report quarterly, so that's why unemployment uses quarters too.
0 coins
Marilyn Dixon
•That actually makes a lot of sense! I didn't think about it from the employer reporting side.
0 coins
Dana Doyle
•Yeah, and that's also why there's sometimes a delay in wages showing up on your claim - employers have time to submit their quarterly reports.
0 coins
Liam Duke
Been through this process twice now and both times I had to call to get clarification on my base period. The automatic calculation doesn't always get it right, especially if you have wages from multiple states.
0 coins
Marilyn Dixon
•Oh no, I did work in Oregon for a few months last year. Does that complicate things?
0 coins
Liam Duke
•It can. You might need to file a combined wage claim to include wages from both states. Definitely worth calling to ask about.
0 coins
Angel Campbell
•This is exactly the kind of situation where Claimyr really helps - getting through to someone who can walk you through the multi-state wage situation.
0 coins
Manny Lark
I work in HR and deal with unemployment claims regularly. The quarter system is standard across most states, not just Washington. Each quarter is always 3 calendar months, never varies.
0 coins
Marilyn Dixon
•That's helpful to know it's consistent! Do you see a lot of confusion about this from employees?
0 coins
Manny Lark
•Oh absolutely. It's one of the most common questions we get when someone is laid off or considering filing for unemployment.
0 coins
Rita Jacobs
Just want to add that if you're self-employed or have 1099 income, the quarter calculation works differently. You need to have paid into the unemployment system as a self-employed person to have those wages count.
0 coins
Marilyn Dixon
•Good point! I was all W-2 employment so I think I'm okay there.
0 coins
Khalid Howes
•Wait, self-employed people can pay into unemployment? I had no idea that was even an option.
0 coins
Rita Jacobs
•Yes, but you have to opt in and pay quarterly. It's not automatic like for regular employees.
0 coins
Ben Cooper
The Washington ESD website has a pretty good explanation of base periods if you look under the 'How benefits are calculated' section. Might be worth checking out before you call.
0 coins
Marilyn Dixon
•I'll definitely look that up. Thanks for the pointer!
0 coins
Naila Gordon
•Their website is actually not terrible once you know where to look. The search function is pretty good too.
0 coins
Cynthia Love
One thing that tripped me up was thinking they'd use my most recent earnings, but they don't include the quarter you file in. So there's always going to be some lag in what wages they're looking at.
0 coins
Marilyn Dixon
•That makes sense - they need time to process everything. Did it end up affecting your benefit amount much?
0 coins
Cynthia Love
•Not really, but it was confusing at first when I was trying to estimate what my weekly amount would be.
0 coins
Darren Brooks
If your wages aren't showing up correctly for any quarter, you can submit wage corrections to Washington ESD. Sometimes employers make mistakes or report late.
0 coins
Marilyn Dixon
•How do you submit wage corrections? Is there a specific form?
0 coins
Darren Brooks
•You usually need to contact them directly with pay stubs or other wage documentation. It's not something you can do online.
0 coins
Angel Campbell
•Another good reason to use something like Claimyr to get through to them quickly rather than trying to call repeatedly.
0 coins
Rosie Harper
The quarter thing confused me too at first. What helped was thinking of it like taxes - you file taxes annually but they're based on quarterly earnings reports from employers.
0 coins
Marilyn Dixon
•That's a great comparison! Makes it much clearer when you think about it that way.
0 coins
Elliott luviBorBatman
Just to clarify for anyone reading this - when they say 'quarter' they mean calendar quarter, not fiscal quarter. Some companies use different fiscal years which can be confusing.
0 coins
Marilyn Dixon
•Good distinction! I work for a company with an odd fiscal year so that's helpful to know.
0 coins
Demi Hall
•Yes! Always calendar quarters for unemployment. January-March, April-June, July-September, October-December.
0 coins
Mateusius Townsend
The whole base period thing is designed to give you a stable calculation based on a reasonable period of work history. It's not perfect but it's pretty fair overall.
0 coins
Marilyn Dixon
•That makes sense. I was worried it might not capture my actual earnings well, but it sounds like it's set up to be reasonably accurate.
0 coins
Kara Yoshida
•Yeah, and if the standard base period doesn't work out well for you, the alternate base period often does a better job of capturing recent earnings.
0 coins
Philip Cowan
Thanks everyone for all the helpful info! This thread has been way more useful than the Washington ESD website for understanding how this all works.
0 coins
Marilyn Dixon
•Agreed! Really appreciate everyone taking the time to explain everything.
0 coins
Caesar Grant
•This is why I love this forum - real people explaining things in ways that actually make sense.
0 coins
Ethan Moore
I just went through this same confusion last month! The key thing that helped me was realizing that Washington ESD automatically calculates both the standard base period (first 4 of last 5 completed quarters) and the alternate base period (last 4 completed quarters) to see which one gives you a higher benefit amount. So you don't have to worry too much about figuring it out yourself - they'll use whichever calculation is better for you. The quarters are definitely 3 months each as others have said. My advice is to gather all your pay stubs from the last year and a half just in case they need wage verification, but let their system do the heavy lifting on the calculations.
0 coins