How much money do you have to make to get unemployment benefits in Washington ESD?

For Washington ESD unemployment benefits, you need to have earned wages in at least two quarters of your base period (which is usually the first 4 of the last 5 completed calendar quarters before you filed). The minimum is pretty low - you need at least $1,000 in your highest earning quarter and total base period wages of at least 1.5 times your highest quarter amount.

I had similar part-time work and qualified no problem. The tricky part isn't usually the earnings requirement, it's proving you're able and available for work and doing the job search stuff. Make sure you understand those requirements too.

The hardest part for me was actually getting through to someone at Washington ESD to verify my eligibility. Their phone lines are constantly busy and I kept getting disconnected. I eventually found this service called Claimyr (claimyr.com) that helped me get through to an actual agent. They have a video demo at https://youtu.be/7DieNd3C7zQ showing how it works. Saved me hours of calling.

Just to add some specifics - Washington state uses something called the 'monetary determination' to figure out if you qualify. You'll get a letter after filing that shows your base period wages and tells you your weekly benefit amount. If you don't qualify monetarily, it'll explain why.

be careful about the quarter thing - i thought i had enough but turns out one of my jobs didn't report wages correctly to Washington ESD and i had to get that fixed before my claim could be processed

Another thing to keep in mind - if you don't qualify using the standard base period (first 4 of last 5 quarters), Washington ESD will automatically check if you qualify using the alternate base period (last 4 completed quarters). So even if your recent work was too recent for the standard base period, you might still qualify.

The Washington ESD website has a benefit calculator tool where you can estimate your weekly benefit amount if you know your quarterly wages. It's pretty accurate from what I've seen.

Just want to mention that even if you qualify monetarily, you still have to meet all the other requirements like being unemployed through no fault of your own, being able and available for work, and actively seeking work. The earnings requirement is just the first hurdle.

DONT FORGET you also have to serve a waiting week before you can collect benefits! I forgot about that my first time filing and was confused why I didn't get paid for my first week.

For what it's worth, based on your work history you described, you should definitely qualify. Two part-time jobs over a year would easily meet the minimum requirements. The bigger question is probably going to be your weekly benefit amount.

One more thing - if you had any self-employment income or gig work (Uber, DoorDash, etc.), that might not count toward your base period wages unless you were paying into the unemployment system. Just something to be aware of.

If you're still having trouble getting through to verify your eligibility or if your claim gets held up, definitely consider using that Claimyr service someone mentioned earlier. I used it when my claim went into adjudication and it was worth every penny to actually talk to someone at Washington ESD.

my advice is just file and see what happens. if you dont qualify theyll tell you why and you can appeal if you think its wrong. better to try than assume you dont qualify

Just make sure you have all your employment information ready when you file - employer names, addresses, dates of employment, and reason for separation. Having that stuff organized will make the application process much smoother.

The whole process can seem overwhelming at first but it's really not that complicated once you get started. Washington ESD's online system is pretty straightforward for filing the initial claim.