How many hours can I work while on unemployment without losing my Washington ESD benefits?

Thanks! What do you mean by maximum hours from base period job? My last job was full-time 40 hours a week.

If your base period job was 40 hours, you can work up to 39 hours and still potentially receive some benefits, but your weekly benefit amount will be reduced dollar for dollar after you earn more than your weekly benefit amount.

This is so important! My friend didn't report some cash work and got hit with an overpayment notice months later.

Exactly! The overpayment penalties are no joke. Always better to be honest upfront.

Interesting, I'll look into that. The phone situation with Washington ESD is absolutely ridiculous.

Never heard of this but honestly anything is better than spending 3 hours on hold just to get disconnected.

Yes, you still need to meet the job search requirements. You're required to make at least 3 job search activities per week unless you're on standby with your employer.

Ugh that seems like a lot when I'm already working part-time. But I guess I understand the logic.

That sounds wrong. Can you share more details about your weekly benefit amount and what you earned that week? The calculation should be more straightforward than that.

My weekly benefit is $427 and I earned about $180 that week. They paid me only $247 instead of $427.

That's actually correct. In Washington, you can earn up to your weekly benefit amount before they start reducing benefits dollar for dollar. So $427 - $180 = $247. The system is working as intended.

How do you handle the irregular schedule with gig work? Some weeks I might make $50, other weeks $300.

Just report whatever you actually earned that specific week. Washington ESD adjusts your benefit payment week by week based on what you report.

What's considered 'too many hours'? The job I'm looking at is consistently 15-20 hours every week.

15-20 hours should be fine as long as you're still actively seeking full-time work and meeting job search requirements. It's when you get to 35+ hours regularly that they might question your availability.

Yes! I learned this the hard way during an audit. Having good records saved me from a big headache.

Good advice, I'll make sure to keep everything organized from the start.

The job is just weekends so that shouldn't be an issue. Thanks for pointing that out though.

Weekend work is usually perfect because it doesn't interfere with most full-time job interviews or opportunities.

That's exactly the kind of specific guidance I need. I might try that service too.

How much does something like that cost? Seems too good to be true.

It's worth it just to get clear answers instead of guessing and potentially messing up your claim.

I'll look for that calculator, sounds helpful for planning my budget.

I tried that calculator but couldn't find it. Maybe they moved it or took it down?

It might be in a different spot now. The website gets reorganized periodically.

Definitely planning to be completely honest. Not worth the risk of getting in trouble later.

Smart approach. Washington ESD takes reporting violations seriously.

It's just a basic retail job, no benefits offered. But good point to keep in mind.

Yeah benefits can complicate things because it might indicate more permanent employment status.

Thanks everyone! This has been super helpful. I feel much more confident about taking the job now.

Good luck with the new job! Part-time work can sometimes lead to full-time opportunities too.

That's what I'm hoping for. Plus it'll help with bills while I'm job searching.

That's reassuring to hear a success story. Did you eventually find full-time work?

Yes! Actually got hired full-time at a different company but the part-time job gave me good recent work experience to put on applications.

I bookmarked their website already. Hopefully I won't need it but good to have as backup.

Having a way to actually reach Washington ESD when you need them is invaluable. The regular phone system is basically useless.