How many weeks do you have to work to be eligible for unemployment in Washington?

You need to have worked in at least 2 of the last 4 quarters before you file your claim, and you need to have earned at least $1,000 in your highest quarter. It's not about weeks worked specifically, but about quarters and earnings. Your 8 months should definitely count as long as you earned enough.

i think its different for everyone depending on how much you made but yeah the quarters thing is right. i had to wait forever to get approved because Washington ESD kept asking for more wage info from my old employer

The specific requirement is you need wages in at least 2 quarters of your base period, with total wages of at least 1.5 times your highest quarter earnings. There's also a minimum threshold - you need at least $1,000 in your highest quarter. Part-time work counts the same as full-time for these calculations, it's all about the dollar amounts you earned.

If you're having trouble getting through to Washington ESD to check your eligibility, I found this service called Claimyr that helps you actually reach a live agent. They have a system that calls for you and gets you connected - saved me hours of busy signals. There's a demo video at https://youtu.be/7DieNd3C7zQ that shows how it works. Might be worth checking out if you need to talk to someone directly about your specific situation.

Just want to add that even if you technically qualify based on wages, you still need to meet the other requirements like being unemployed through no fault of your own, actively seeking work, and able and available for work. The wage eligibility is just the first hurdle.

does anyone know if gig work counts toward the wage requirements? i did some uber driving between regular jobs

Update: I checked my pay stubs and I think I should qualify. Made about $3,200 in my highest quarter and worked in 3 of the last 4 quarters. Going to file my claim this week. Thanks everyone for the help!

The Washington ESD website has a benefit calculator that can give you an estimate of both eligibility and benefit amount. It's not perfect but gives you a ballpark idea before you file.

JUST A WARNING - don't trust what Washington ESD tells you about eligibility over the phone. I was told I qualified, filed my claim, then weeks later got denied because apparently one of my employers didn't report wages correctly. Had to appeal and it took months to sort out.

For what it's worth, I barely qualified - had exactly $1,000 in my highest quarter and wages in only 2 quarters. Still got approved so don't worry if you're right at the minimums.

remember you also have to register with WorkSource WA and do job searches every week once you start collecting. they don't always tell you that upfront but its required

One thing nobody mentioned - if you don't qualify using the standard base period, Washington ESD can sometimes use an alternate base period which looks at more recent quarters. This helps people who just started working or had gaps.

I had a similar situation and used Claimyr to get through to an agent who walked me through the eligibility requirements for my specific case. Really helpful when you have questions about complex work history like gaps or multiple employers.

don't forget that if you worked in multiple states you might need to file in the state where you worked most recently or earned the most wages. washington has agreements with other states for this stuff

Pro tip: file your claim on Tuesday-Thursday if possible. Mondays and Fridays are crazy busy and you're more likely to have technical issues with their website.

The whole system is so confusing. I wish they just had a simple chart that said 'if you worked X weeks and earned Y dollars, you qualify.' Instead you need a math degree to figure it out.

Whatever you do, don't lie or exaggerate on your application. They verify everything and fraud penalties are serious. If you're not sure about something, it's better to be conservative in your estimates.

Just wanted to mention that if you're denied initially, don't give up. The appeals process exists for a reason and sometimes the initial determination is wrong. I know someone who won on appeal after being denied for insufficient wages.

One last thing - make sure you file as soon as possible after becoming unemployed. There's no waiting period for eligibility but you can't backdate claims very far, so don't delay if you think you qualify.