How many days do you have to work to get unemployment benefits in Washington ESD?

It's not actually about days worked - Washington ESD looks at your earnings during what they call the 'base period.' You need to have earned at least $1,872 in wages during your base period, which is usually the first 4 of the last 5 completed calendar quarters before you file your claim. You also need wages in at least 2 quarters of your base period.

You also need to make sure you lost your job through no fault of your own. If you quit without good cause or got fired for misconduct, you won't qualify regardless of how much you earned. The work requirements are just one part of the eligibility puzzle.

I had a similar situation last year and spent weeks trying to get through to Washington ESD to ask about my eligibility. The phone lines are impossible! I finally found this service called Claimyr (claimyr.com) that helped me get connected to an actual agent who could review my work history and confirm I qualified. They have a video demo at https://youtu.be/7DieNd3C7zQ that shows how it works. Saved me so much time and stress.

UGH the whole system is so confusing!! I worked for 6 months and made like $15,000 and they still denied me because apparently I didn't work in enough quarters or something?? Makes no sense when I clearly worked and paid taxes.

There's also an alternative base period calculation they can use if you don't qualify under the regular base period. It uses the 4 most recent completed quarters instead of the first 4 of the last 5. Sometimes that helps people who worked more recently.

Just apply and see what happens. The worst they can say is no, right? I thought I wouldn't qualify but ended up getting approved. The online application walks you through everything and they'll tell you if you meet the requirements.

I've been working construction on and off for years and this comes up a lot. The key thing is that $1,872 minimum and having wages in multiple quarters. Some guys work really hard for 3 months then take time off and wonder why they don't qualify. You need that spread across quarters.

Does anyone know if gig work counts toward the wage requirements? I did some DoorDash and Uber driving along with my regular job.

I'm in a similar boat - worked part time for about 10 months but not sure about the quarters thing. When I called Washington ESD they said I could check my wages online but I can't figure out how to access that information. Anyone know how to see your wage history?

Word of advice - if you do qualify and file a claim, make sure you understand the weekly claim requirements. I got approved but then got in trouble because I didn't realize I had to file every week even if I didn't get paid that week. Almost lost my benefits over that.

Another thing to keep in mind is that Washington ESD will look at your highest earning quarter in your base period to determine your weekly benefit amount. So even if you barely qualify, you might not get much money each week if your wages were low.

I tried using that Claimyr service someone mentioned earlier and it actually worked great. Got through to an agent in like 10 minutes instead of spending hours on hold. They were able to look up my wage history and confirm I qualified before I even submitted my application. Definitely recommend it if you're having trouble getting through.

The quarter system is so confusing. I wish they would just say 'you need to work X number of weeks' or something simple like that. Having to calculate base periods and qualifying wages is unnecessarily complicated.

Don't forget you also have to be able and available for work to get benefits. So if you have any restrictions on when you can work or what jobs you can take, that might affect your eligibility too.

Update: I just applied online and it was easier than I thought. They automatically calculated everything and told me I qualified! My first payment should come next week. Thanks everyone for the help and advice.