How much is partial unemployment benefit in Washington ESD?

That's actually better than I expected! So I'd get $422 plus my $360 from work? That would really help right now.

Wait, I thought there was some kind of minimum earning threshold where if you make too much they cut you off entirely?

Good to know about that limit. At 20 hours I'm nowhere near $768 but it's helpful for planning if I get more hours later.

I had no idea about the 1.5x rule. I've been afraid to pick up extra shifts because I thought any work would kill my benefits completely.

Thanks for the heads up! I'll make sure to use the gross amount from my paystub, not what actually hits my bank account.

How do you fix that if you accidentally reported wrong amounts? I think I might have done the same thing last month.

You can call Washington ESD to correct reporting errors, but good luck getting through. I ended up using this service called Claimyr that helped me reach an agent - claimyr.com. They have a demo video at https://youtu.be/7DieNd3C7zQ that shows how it works.

How many hours would be considered 'too many' for staying eligible? My manager mentioned possibly giving me more shifts if business picks up.

There's no specific hour cutoff, but generally if you're working close to full-time (35+ hours) or your earnings get close to that 1.5x limit, they might question your availability for other work.

Oh man, I hadn't even thought about that. How many job contacts do I need to do each week while working part-time?

Same as before - 3 job search activities per week unless you have a different requirement. Working part-time doesn't change the job search rules.

This is why the system is so confusing. You're working but still have to prove you're looking for other work. Makes no sense.

That's reassuring to hear from someone who's been through it. How long were you on partial benefits before finding full-time work?

About 3 months. My employer gradually increased my hours until I was full-time, then I just stopped filing claims. The transition was pretty smooth.

Yes, tips count as earnings and need to be reported. You should report your total gross income including tips, wages, and any other compensation from work.

Thanks! That makes the calculation more complicated since tips vary so much week to week.

I feel you on the phone issues. Someone mentioned Claimyr earlier - I actually tried them when I couldn't reach ESD about my partial claim questions. Worked great, got connected to an agent in like 10 minutes instead of waiting hours.

Really? I might have to check that out. The hold times with ESD are just ridiculous.

Is that service legit? Seems too good to be true that they can actually get you through to ESD agents.

Yeah it's real. They basically call for you and handle the wait time. Check out their demo video to see how it works: https://youtu.be/7DieNd3C7zQ

Good point. My job is all above board with proper payroll, but I can see how that could be an issue for some people.

Exactly! That extra money will make such a difference right now. I was worried I'd lose everything by taking the part-time job.

It's one of the things Washington ESD actually does right. The partial benefit system encourages people to take available work instead of waiting around for the perfect full-time job.

Good advice. I'll start a spreadsheet to track everything alongside filing my weekly claims.

I take photos of my paystubs and save them in a folder on my phone. Makes it easy when filling out the weekly claim form.

The calculation stays the same - they just add up all your gross weekly earnings from all jobs, then subtract 25% of that total from your weekly benefit amount.

Thanks! So if I made $360 from job 1 and $200 from job 2, they'd subtract 25% of $560 total, not calculate each job separately.

Exactly right. Just make sure to report earnings from both jobs when you file your weekly claim.

Same here! Thanks everyone for explaining everything so clearly. I feel much better about my situation now.