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How To Get Started With Unemployment

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If You Quit For Good Cause

3 Important Things to do to Get Your Unemployment Benefits Started After a Layoff

You may be eligible for unemployment if you quit your job. In most cases, you must prove that the conditions were so bad that no reasonable person would stay.

Maybe you faced a dangerous work environment, harassment or discrimination. Perhaps your employer reduced your hours, demoted you into an unsuitable role or didnt pay you on time or in full. You might have good cause if you simply could no longer afford transportation to and from work.

If you quit your job, however, you must show that you did everything you could to improve the situation. Quitting was your last available recourse.

You may also qualify if you quit work due to a medical condition or to care for an ill family member. Some states may even provide benefits to people who quit due to domestic violence. In these situations, applicants dont need to prove that they tried everything they could to keep their job.

If youre considering quitting due to COVID-19-related issues, check with your states unemployment office about its benefit requirements. The Department of Labor lists each states contact information.

Filing For Unemployment Here’s How To Get Started

  • Millions of Americans are filing for unemployment because of coronavirus-related layoffs.
  • You can apply for unemployment benefits if you’ve been laid off, furloughed, your hours have been reduced to zero, or if you’re a part-time employee.
  • Here’s a simple guide to filing for unemployment benefits.

Millions of Americans are losing their jobs as the coronavirus pandemic continues to force mass layoffs.

Last week alone, nearly 3.3 million Americans filed for unemployment benefits – a number many officials expect to rise in the coming weeks.

Follow this guide to find out if you’re eligible for unemployment and how to file.

Can You Collect Unemployment And Start A Business

You can start a business while collecting unemployment, but it may affect the amount of your weekly benefit and could be impacted by the time you need to spend searching for a full-time job.

When youre collecting unemployment, there are typically work-search requirements where you must be performing regular job searches and be available to work immediately if a position is offered to you. This may eat into the time you spend on your business, or could require you to step away if a job is offered.

Rules vary from state to state, so youll want to review yours. But generally, nothing prohibits someone from starting a business while collecting unemployment, according to David L. Barron, a labor and employment lawyer at Cozen OConnor.

Use this time to do all the legwork, groundwork, and planning of starting a business, Barron said in a phone interview. None of that jeopardizes your unemployment, as long as youre meeting your states requirements for looking for work.

What will matter is income: Should your business begin earning money, you need to report that, and it may reduce your unemployment benefits. For example, in California, you can earn up to 25% of your weekly unemployment benefit. After that, your weekly unemployment benefit will be reduced by the remaining amount earned.

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The Gold Standard And The Spreading Of Global Depression

The gold standard was the primary transmission mechanism of the Great Depression. Even countries that did not face bank failures and a monetary contraction first hand were forced to join the deflationary policy since higher interest rates in countries that performed a deflationary policy led to a gold outflow in countries with lower interest rates. Under the gold standard’s pricespecie flow mechanism, countries that lost gold but nevertheless wanted to maintain the gold standard had to permit their money supply to decrease and the domestic price level to decline .

There is also consensus that protectionist policies such as the SmootHawley Tariff Act helped to worsen the depression.

You Meet Requirements For Time Worked And Wages Earned

How to collect unemployment benefits

To get unemployment, you must have worked for a certain amount of time and earned a minimum amount of money. Typically, the unemployment office looks at your employment and earning history in the previous year. Every state sets its own requirements. Check with your state to learn about its policy.

Most states also require that you were a part-time or full-time employee. If you were an independent contractor, like a freelancer, then you probably cant get benefits. Thats because your employer may not have paid unemployment taxes while you were working.

With that said, during the coronavirus pandemic, federal relief was offered to self-employed and gig workers. Although these benefits are often temporarily extended to freelancers, its wise to check with your states unemployment office for the most up-to-date information.

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How Long Does It Take To Get A Payment And How Much Is It

After you submit your application it typically takes two to three weeks to get your first payment. Most states pay benefits for 26 weeks, or about six months. The amount of money you get in that unemployment check varies from state to state. So for example, the maximum Massachusetts pays is $795 a week- the highest of any state. Mississippi workers on the other hand receive the lowest unemployment checks at 235 dollars a week.

Contact Your State Representative Or Senator

As a last ditch effort, Harris reached out to her state senators office, and says she was told they would send an inquiry on her behalf. About two weeks later, in late September, Harris received back pay totaling $10,000. Harris believes she is still owed additional benefits, and is unclear on how to ensure continued benefits.

Pagan has reason to agree that, for anyone who is having trouble getting their unemployment benefits, contacting a state senator or other state elected official is probably the best bet. She credits this approach with helping get her issue resolved.

Unemployment benefits are handled by the state, so contacting your state-level elected officials can help get the ball rolling. They can sometimes get an answer faster than the unemployment office itself, Stettner says. They are doing case work on behalf of their constituents, but theyre also overwhelmed, he says. He even recommends reaching out to your state governors office.

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What Can Disqualify You From Unemployment Benefits

Not everyone is eligible for unemployment benefits. Requirements are different in each state, but typically, you will be disqualified if you:

  • Quit your job without good cause, as determined by your state.
  • Only worked at your job for a short time before becoming unemployed.
  • Didnt make enough money before you lost your job.
  • Were fired for work-related misconduct.
  • Arent able or available to work.
  • Are not looking for work, or dont report your job search activity.
  • Refuse suitable job offers.
  • Knowingly provide false information on your claim.

Job search requirements may vary from state to state. Make sure you know what is required in your state and report information about your work search.

How To Stop Or Restart Your Benefits

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In order to receive your unemployment benefit, you must log into your state department of labor account and recertify your claim every week. You’ll answer questions about how much time you worked or any wages you earned that week. If you earned $0, you’ll receive your maximum unemployment benefit for that week.

If you’re called back to work at the same schedule and rate from before your layoff, you should immediately let your state unemployment office know, says Michele Evermore, a senior policy analyst at the National Employment Law Project.

You must notify your state agency that you’re earning wages on the first day you’re back to work, not when you get your first paycheck. For example, if you’re recalled to work on July 15 but won’t be paid until July 31, you still must stop your unemployment benefit as of July 15.

“The No. 1 cause for overpayment is if people don’t notify their unemployment agency right away when they go back to work,” Evermore tells CNBC Make It. If you’re overpaid in unemployment and don’t return the funds, your eligibility to receive assistance will be delayed if you end up needing to get unemployment again if you lose work in the future. In some cases, you could also owe a penalty for not returning the money soon enough, Evermore adds.

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The Challenges Of Long

One of the many challenges for the long-term unemployed is that when you are out of work, it can be harder to get hired. For many job seekers, it takes much more effort to find a job when unemployed than when working.

In a 2017 study, the New York Feds Liberty Street Economics found that job searching was less effective for unemployed job seekers than it was for employees seeking a job change. In fact, unemployed workers spent 8.4 hours per week searching and applied for 8.1 jobs per month, while those employed spent 1.2 hours per week searching and applied for 1.2 jobs per month.

The study also reported that employed workers actively looking for work receive the greatest number of employer contacts and job offers, despite spending less time job hunting.

World War Ii And Recovery

The common view among economic historians is that the Great Depression ended with the advent of World War II. Many economists believe that government spending on the war caused or at least accelerated recovery from the Great Depression, though some consider that it did not play a very large role in the recovery, though it did help in reducing unemployment.

The rearmament policies leading up to World War II helped stimulate the economies of Europe in 19371939. By 1937, unemployment in Britain had fallen to 1.5 million. The mobilization of manpower following the outbreak of war in 1939 ended unemployment.

When the United States entered the war in 1941, it finally eliminated the last effects from the Great Depression and brought the U.S. unemployment rate down below 10%. In the US, massive war spending doubled economic growth rates, either masking the effects of the Depression or essentially ending the Depression. Businessmen ignored the mounting national debt and heavy new taxes, redoubling their efforts for greater output to take advantage of generous government contracts.

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How Starting A Business Affects Your Unemployment Benefits

While job loss can be a devastating moment, its also an opportunity for many people to chase an entrepreneurial dream. If youre considering starting a business while collecting unemployment benefits, there are some things to consider before you begin. There may be unemployment requirements to keep in mind. And, for those who do take the leap in a down economy, sources of financing and consumer spending habits may be in flux. Having a solid plan that takes the economy into account is essential.

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Create An Online Account At Desncgov To:

  • File a claim for unemployment
  • Complete your Weekly Certifications
  • Check your Claim Status

To help prevent fraud and protect claimant and employer information, DES is increasing security measures for accessing its online benefits system.

ID.me: DES is partnering with ID.me to provide a secure identity verification process for unemployment claimants. Claimants may receive an email from DES notifying them that they must verify their identity through ID.me to access their account and be eligible for benefits. Claimants should click on the link in the email to start the verification process, which can be completed online 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

Multi-Factor Authentication: When signing into their DES account, individuals may be asked to verify their identity using Multi-Factor Authentication. DES will send a one-time passcode to the email address on file for the account. The user must enter the one-time passcode and their password to access their account.

What Unemployment Benefits Will You Get

Now that you know if you can file for unemployment if you quit your job, you may have other pressing questions, including:

  • Is unemployment compensation enough to live on?
  • How long will you receive payment while you search for your next job?

The answers all depend on where you live. Most states offer 26 or more weeks of benefits. Georgia has one of the shortest limits at 14 to 20 weeks but increased to 26 weeks during the coronavirus pandemic.

The government determines your benefits as a percentage of your former salary. States also set a cap on how much youll get. Alabama has one of the lowest limits at $275 a week. Massachusetts has one of the highest at $855.

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How To Apply For Unemployment Benefits

The best and fastest way to apply is online. You can apply by phone, but wait times are very long because of COVID-19. At this time, you cannot apply in person. The steps below will guide you through the process.

Get ready to apply

Before applying, gather information youll need. See Page 1 of the Unemployed Worker Handbook or visit the Have this information ready page.

Reasonable accommodation. Information on reasonable accommodation is available for unemployment-benefits customers with disabilities.

You Can Stop And Restart Unemployment Aid Throughout Your Benefit Year

Labor Talk: Filing for Unemployment Basics

When you first apply for unemployment, you become eligible to receive a certain amount of money based on how much you used to earn every week, averaged over the previous four quarters. On average, this amount will replace roughly half of your previous earnings or less, and exact calculations vary by state. In April 2020, state-provided unemployment averaged $333 per week nationwide but ranged from a low of $101 in Oklahoma to $531 in Massachusetts.

This dollar figure is the maximum of what you can receive in unemployment every week for a benefit year of 52 weeks.

The number of weeks you can collect unemployment within that 52-week period will depend on your state. State allowances range from a low of 12 weeks in Florida and North Carolina to a high of 28 weeks in Montana but are most commonly 26 weeks. You don’t have to use your weeks of unemployment consecutively, but generally you do have to use them within a year of when you first qualified for benefits.

So, for example, let’s say you live in a state that offers 26 weeks of unemployment. You qualify for aid and claim benefits for 13 weeks. Your employer reopens and you’re rehired, so you stop collecting benefits while you’re working full-time. Twenty-six weeks go by. If the business shuts down again after that period, you’ll still have a remaining 13 weeks to collect unemployment before your benefit year expires.

This is how your unemployment period could break down in normal circumstances.

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Common Unemployment Benefits Questions Answered

If you find yourself out of work, you may feel overwhelmed trying to navigate the ins and outs of unemployment insurance.

To help guide you through this transition, here are the answers to some of the most common questions about unemployment insurance. Learn what you can do to file for unemployment insurance when you lose your job.

Breakdown Of International Trade

Many economists have argued that the sharp decline in international trade after 1930 helped to worsen the depression, especially for countries significantly dependent on foreign trade. In a 1995 survey of American economic historians, two-thirds agreed that the SmootHawley Tariff Act at least worsened the Great Depression. Most historians and economists blame this Act for worsening the depression by seriously reducing international trade and causing retaliatory tariffs in other countries. While foreign trade was a small part of overall economic activity in the U.S. and was concentrated in a few businesses like farming, it was a much larger factor in many other countries. The average ad valorem rate of duties on dutiable imports for 19211925 was 25.9% but under the new tariff it jumped to 50% during 19311935. In dollar terms, American exports declined over the next four years from about $5.2 billion in 1929 to $1.7 billion in 1933 so, not only did the physical volume of exports fall, but also the prices fell by about 13 as written. Hardest hit were farm commodities such as wheat, cotton, tobacco, and lumber.

Effect of tariffs

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If You’re Denied Appeal

After you file your claim, your state agency will typically review the information you provide, talk to your past employer, and may even call to interview you about your situation. Most states also require employees to have worked a certain amount of time and/or earned a minimum amount to be eligible for benefits.

If the agency believes you don’t meet any of its requirements, it can deny your claim for benefits. But don’t give up, Evermore says.

“Most people don’t realize that if you’re denied benefits on the first try, you can always try to appeal,” Evermore says. That process can be a bit time-consuming, but it’s worth it. And with the COVID-19 situation continuing to evolve, your eligibility may change.

“If you get rejected, appeal,” she says.

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