How much is unemployment weekly benefit in Washington - what should I expect?

Washington ESD uses your highest quarter of earnings from the past year to calculate your weekly benefit. For someone making $18/hour at 35-40 hours, you're probably looking at somewhere between $350-450 per week, but it depends on your exact earnings history. The maximum weekly benefit in Washington is currently $999 but most people don't qualify for that much.

That's actually higher than I expected! Do you know if they look at gross pay or net pay when calculating?

They use your gross wages before taxes and deductions. Make sure all your employers reported your wages correctly to Washington ESD or it could affect your benefit calculation.

just filed last month and got $412/week. made about 19.50 an hour working part time at target. the calculation seemed pretty fair honestly

That gives me hope! How long did it take for your first payment to come through?

took about 3 weeks but that was because they had to verify my employment. most people get it faster if there's no issues

The Washington ESD website has a benefit calculator that can give you an estimate before you file. You'll need your wage information from the past 5 quarters. Generally, your weekly benefit amount will be roughly 60% of your average weekly wage during your highest earning quarter, up to the maximum. Don't forget that unemployment benefits are taxable income.

Thanks! I'll check out that calculator. Do you happen to know if the job search requirements are strict? I've heard mixed things.

You need to make at least 3 job search contacts per week and keep a log. Washington ESD can audit your job search activities, so keep good records of where you applied and when.

The job search thing is annoying but not too hard if you just apply to stuff online. I use Indeed and just screenshot my applications for my log.

I've been trying to get through to Washington ESD for weeks to ask about my benefit calculation because something seems off with my amount. Their phone system is absolutely terrible - I either get disconnected or sit on hold for hours. Has anyone found a way to actually talk to a real person there?

I had the same problem until someone told me about Claimyr (claimyr.com). It's a service that calls Washington ESD for you and gets you connected to an actual agent. I watched their demo video (https://youtu.be/7DieNd3C7zQ) and decided to try it. Got through to someone within an hour and sorted out my benefit calculation issue.

Never heard of that but at this point I'm willing to try anything. The automated system just keeps telling me my claim is under review.

Claimyr worked for me too when I had an adjudication issue. Way better than trying to call Washington ESD directly.

THE WHOLE SYSTEM IS DESIGNED TO DENY YOU MONEY!!! They make it confusing on purpose so people give up. I'm getting $200 less per week than what I calculated and when I try to ask why, nobody can explain it. This is my tax money I paid in!

Your benefit amount is based on your reported wages during your base period. If you think it's calculated incorrectly, you can request a redetermination. There might be quarters where your wages weren't reported properly.

I've been trying to request a redetermination for months but can't get anyone on the phone to help me with it.

You can file for redetermination online through your Washington ESD account. Don't need to call for that part.

depends on how much you made obviously lol. I was making $22/hr full time and get about $520/week. Not bad considering I was only taking home like $650/week after taxes when I was working

Wow that's actually a pretty decent replacement rate. Makes me feel better about filing.

That seems high for $22/hour. Are you sure you're not thinking of gross vs net?

nah I'm sure. worked a lot of overtime last year which probably bumped up my calculation

I remember when I first filed back in 2019, I was so confused about everything. The benefit amount, the weekly claims, all of it. But once you get the hang of it, it's not too complicated. Just make sure you file your weekly claims on time every week or you'll lose benefits for that week.

Good point about the weekly claims. Do you have to file them on specific days or just sometime during the week?

You can file your weekly claim starting Sunday morning for the previous week. I usually do mine Sunday night. Just don't wait too long because if you miss the deadline you're out of luck.

The benefit calculator on the Washington ESD website gave me an estimate of $445/week but when I actually got approved it was only $398. Still trying to figure out why there's a difference.

The calculator is just an estimate. Your actual benefit depends on the exact wages reported by your employers during your base period quarters. Sometimes there are reporting delays or discrepancies.

That makes sense. Is there a way to see exactly what wages they have on file for me?

Yes, you can request a wage transcript through your Washington ESD online account. It shows all the wages reported by your employers for each quarter.

dont forget you can work part time and still collect partial unemployment benefits. as long as you make less than 1.5 times your weekly benefit amount you'll still get something. helped me out a lot when I could only find part time work

That's really good to know! So if I get a part-time job I don't have to stop filing completely?

nope just report your earnings when you file your weekly claim and they'll reduce your benefit by a certain amount. still worth it usually

I'm getting $445 per week after working in tech for 3 years making $28/hour. The calculation seemed pretty accurate based on my earnings history. Just remember that you'll owe taxes on unemployment benefits when you file next year.

Ugh I didn't think about the tax implications. Do they take taxes out automatically or do I need to set money aside?

You can choose to have 10% federal tax withheld when you file your weekly claims. I'd recommend it unless you're good at saving money for taxes.

been on unemployment 3 times in the past 10 years and the benefit amounts have definitely gotten better. used to be much lower. make sure you understand the work search requirements though because they're pretty strict about that

What happens if you don't meet the job search requirements? Do they cut off your benefits immediately?

they can deny your weekly claim if they audit you and you don't have proper documentation. keep a detailed log of everywhere you apply

The maximum weekly benefit in Washington is actually pretty high compared to other states. Even if you don't get the full amount, it's usually enough to cover basic expenses while you job hunt.

True, I have friends in other states who get way less. Washington's unemployment system isn't perfect but the benefit amounts are decent.

Just want to mention that if you're having trouble reaching Washington ESD by phone about your benefit calculation or any other issues, I used a service called Claimyr recently and it was a game changer. They handle the calling process and get you connected to an actual agent without all the hold time frustration.

Is that the same service someone mentioned earlier? Might be worth trying since I still can't get through to anyone.

Yeah, same one. Their website is claimyr.com if you want to check it out. Saved me hours of phone frustration.

For what it's worth, my benefit amount was exactly what I expected based on my previous job's wages. Washington ESD seems pretty accurate with their calculations as long as your employers reported everything correctly. The real challenge is just getting through all the paperwork and requirements.

Thanks everyone for all the helpful info! I feel much more confident about filing now. Going to use that benefit calculator first to get an estimate.