A friend of mine recently got laid off and I have a question for anyone who knows the in’s and out’s of unemployment insurance. Basically her situation is this…her company told her that they simply do not have enough potential business projected for the rest of this year or the next to keep her on. However, they do have work. So, they are asking her if she would be willing to work for them when they need it. This would probably not be for a lot of hours in any given month.
So, my question is, would she still be eligible for UI?
Have her call the state UI department or look at their website.
In many states (Washington, for example), having partial employment will reduce the UI benefit per week, but also extend the number of weeks for which you are eligible (so that you get the same total benefit over a longer period).
Every state is going to be different, and I don’t know about AZ. I do know a little about IL (which, coincidentally, is why I’m here this week). Employment Insurance, at least in IL, is paid out on some scale up to a certain dollar amount (I believe $1640 per month (Obama gave the last $50/month increase)) based on the Claimant’s gross income over a certain number of quarters (I believe at least 2). I forgot what the Claimant had to have made, but I believe that if it’s >$50,000 per year, then they max out the benefit.
The benefits are paid out bi-weekly. During the pay out, the claimant is allowed to work. However, if Claimant makes more in two weeks than the max benefit ($820), then Claimant does not receive any benefit. So, Claimant can make any money up to the maximum bi-weekly benefit in a given two week period. At least for IL.
I am not a lawyer but have used NM UI in the recent past.
Yes, she will be eligible (as I read the OP) for UI. The work described will create a HUGE hassle for her however. She would be better off if they didn’t offer it. If they do offer it, and she turns it down, that creates a problem with her eligibility. (She must certify each week that she did not turn down any work that was offered)
Any week she earns (even if she doesn’t get paid that week) money, the UI is reduced by that amount…zero net gain. So unless she earns more than the UI benefit, she is better off using her time looking for another job than working. In NM (unlike CO for example) this does NOT extend the time UI benefits will be paid. In NM, it is just a gift to the unemployment office.
The NM unemployment system is not set up to handle this situation at all. Essentially it is as if she got hired, then layed off again. She will be asked a number of questions that don’t fit this situation well, and one wrong answer will cut off her UI benefits. Been there, done that.
In my case, due to inability to contact NMDWFS (NM department of workforce solutions) over the phone, I had to make a trip and spend an afternoon at the unemployment office to straighten this out.
The ONLY reason she should seek temporary employment while on UI is for the networking opportunities or similar chance that it will lead to permanent employment.
I eventually had some this work out in to a permanent job, but also lost benefits immediately, and didn’t get paid 'till a couple of months later on some of the other work I did. When you are living on UI, that really smarts.
The FAQ on the NM website I cited explains why this is not quite true. They say that your UI claim is valid for 1 year, but that if benefits are paid out at the maximum rate, you will only get 6 months of benefits. So, if partial employment is less than half the benefits, the total net benefit is the same, just over a longer period of time. It’s only if the partial employment is more than half of the benefit amount that you’re losing anything.