How much do you get from unemployment benefits in Washington - confused about weekly amounts

Thanks! Do you know what the base period is exactly? I'm still confused about which quarters they look at.

The base period is usually the first four of the last five completed quarters before you file. So if you file now in January 2025, they'd look at your earnings from October 2023 through September 2024.

That sounds about right. The formula is pretty complicated though - it's not just 60% of your weekly wage. They look at your highest quarter and divide by 26 weeks I think?

yeah something like that, the whole thing is confusing as hell

Oh no, really? So if I'm still making like $150 a week from my part-time hours, they'll just subtract that from whatever my benefit amount would be?

Not exactly. In Washington, you can earn up to your weekly benefit amount without any reduction. After that, they reduce your benefit dollar for dollar. But if you're earning $150 and your benefit is $300, you'd still get the full $300.

Thanks for the tip! I was dreading trying to call them. How long did it take you to get through using that service?

Way faster than trying on my own. Instead of calling hundreds of times and getting busy signals, I actually got to speak with someone who could explain my specific benefit calculation.

I tried using that calculator but got confused about which wages to include. Do I use gross or net earnings?

Always use gross earnings when dealing with unemployment calculations. They want your total wages before any deductions.

I know it's frustrating, but the calculation is actually pretty straightforward once you understand it. The confusion comes from all the different scenarios - full unemployment vs. partial, different base periods, etc.

yeah but why cant they just tell you upfront what youll get instead of making everyone guess??

That's actually more than I was expecting based on my wages. Did you have any issues with the partial unemployment rules?

Not really, but I was completely unemployed so I didn't have to deal with the earnings deduction stuff. That's where it gets complicated.

True, I guess I'm just worried about whether it's even worth applying if the amount will be really small.

Even if it's a small amount, it's still money you're entitled to. Plus you might be surprised - sometimes the calculation works out better than you expect.

How did you manage to get through? I keep hearing the phone lines are always busy.

I used that Claimyr service someone mentioned earlier. Worth every penny to avoid the phone line nightmare and actually get answers.

Wait, so I could potentially get both my part-time wages AND my full unemployment benefit? That seems too good to be true.

Exactly! That's how partial unemployment is designed to work. It encourages people to take part-time work instead of staying completely unemployed.

This is correct. Washington's partial unemployment rules are actually more generous than many other states in this regard.

Oh that's actually pretty decent! I was worried it would be like $100 or something.

Yeah, Washington has one of the higher minimum benefit amounts compared to other states. The maximum is $999 but most people fall somewhere in between.

It is complicated, but once you get through the initial application process it gets easier. The weekly claims are pretty straightforward.

Good choice! Make sure you report your part-time earnings accurately on your weekly claims. The system is pretty good at catching discrepancies.

And don't forget you'll need to do your job search activities even with partial unemployment. The requirements are the same as full unemployment.

Oh I didn't even think about taxes! Can you have them automatically withhold taxes from the benefit payments?

Yes, you can elect to have 10% withheld for federal taxes when you file your claim. It's optional but saves you from owing a big tax bill later.

How much does something like that cost? I'm already tight on money which is why I need the unemployment benefits.

I don't remember the exact cost but it was totally worth it compared to the hours I wasted trying to call on my own. Plus getting my claim issues resolved quickly was way more valuable.

That gives me hope! Did she have any trouble with the application process?

Not really, but she had to wait a few weeks for the first payment while they processed everything. Make sure you keep filing your weekly claims even if you haven't gotten your first payment yet.

Good to know! I'll watch for that letter once I file. Hopefully it's easier to understand than the website calculator.

It's much clearer. Shows your base period wages, benefit year dates, and weekly amount in plain English.

You're right, I've been overthinking this. I'm going to file tomorrow and see what my benefit amount ends up being.

Wait, I still have to do job searches even though I'm still working part-time? That seems weird.

Yeah, the job search requirement applies to all unemployment claims unless you're specifically on standby status. The idea is that you're still partially unemployed and should be looking for full-time work.

This is correct. Partial unemployment still requires job search activities. You can't just stay in reduced-hours limbo indefinitely.

Thank you! I appreciate everyone's help. This thread has been way more helpful than trying to navigate the ESD website on my own.