Ever Receive Unemployment Compensation?

mickeyd

mickeyd

Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
Joined
Apr 8, 2004
Messages
6,674
Location
South Texas~29N/98W Just West of Woman Hollering C
I admit that I have applied for UC a few times in my life. The first time was about 15 years ago and I had to physically present myself to the unemployment folks every 2 weeks in order to get my $.

Now all that you have to do is log on to their web site, advise them that you looked for a job on 5 web sites each week and they send you money. Actually they do not send you money. They send you a Chase debit card and they add $ to the account every 2 weeks. Your tax $$ at work.



<H4>No more unemployment lines?
Click to expand...
Being jobless isn't pleasant, and neither is trudging down to the unemployment office to claim benefits.
Many states, however, now let you apply online or by phone, making it easier to file an unemployment insurance claim.
A 2005 study showed that half of people who don't apply for benefits didn't because they thought they were ineligible, says Vroman.
But if you're unsure whether or not you'll qualify, it can't hurt to apply, says Paula Brantner, executive director of Workplace Fairness.
Who qualifies?

If you quit, worked part time, were fired for misconduct, or didn't earn enough during a defined period before your job ended, your state may deny benefits.
Qualifying rules vary somewhat from state to state, however.
For instance, "if you're working part time by choice, you probably don't qualify, but in some states (you qualify) if you've been part time because that is all the hours your employer could give you," says Andrew Stettner, deputy director of the National Employment Law Project.
Moreover, if you simply quit, you can't collect -- but some states make exceptions for workers forced to leave their jobs to care for ill family members, he adds.
Click to expand...
</H4>Qualifying for unemployment
 
Yes. Some of the best times of my life were during the time I was collecting UI.
 
Early '80s, laid off from engr job, then the whole company went under. Former boss hired me 3 months later at a different firm. In the meantime I collected every 2 weeks; as I recall I had to send in a postcard listing the job search contacts I had made. It was an unsettling experience, but I don't remember feeling guilty about taking the money.
 
Not yet (knock on wood). Now that my wife is working with a secure job, I'm much less afraid of breaking that history than I used to be. At some point I want to do something else with my life anyway, so while I plan to milk a pretty good gig for a while longer, I can also see the bright side of a pink slip now (in our own specific situation).
 
I started working in my early teens, and was never unemployed 'til I ER'd 2 1/2 years ago, so I never collected unemployment comp.

Well, I guess technically I was unemployed for one day....I graduated HS on a Friday, quit a $2.23/hr grocery store job on Saturday, had no employer on Sunday, and started a new $2.24/hr job on Monday......30+ years later I left it!
 
I have to join Ziggy and Goonie as one of those who has never collected any unemployment compensation.
 
Uh, let's see, I guess I collected a grand total of 2 months' worth last year. It was the first time had ever seen a dime in my career from UI. If I stay at my current job, I will never see another dime from UI.
 
BOBOT said:
Early '80s, laid off from engr job, then the whole company went under. Former boss hired me 3 months later at a different firm. In the meantime I collected every 2 weeks; as I recall I had to send in a postcard listing the job search contacts I had made. It was an unsettling experience, but I don't remember feeling guilty about taking the money.
Click to expand...
That sounds like my experience. Same time frame too. After that I started self-employment for about 25 years. I have a secure full-time job now, and I may not get to try UI again.
 
No. I never had the opportunity; I was too entrepreneurial during my "w*rk years." I would, however, have gladly accepted if I had needed to. UC was, simply put, an insurance policy that I paid for (wages would have been higher without) but, luckily, never collected on. (and Luck did play a major role here.)
 
Maurice said:
That's pretty much how it works. ;)
Click to expand...

No, I meant that I essentially have a job for life at an employer that cannot go out of business if I want to stay where I am.
 
Yes twice, both time I had just got out of the military. The first time it was for about four months the second it was for three. Ironically both times I was just waiting for a background check to be completed before I could get a job.
 
No, have been with the same employer since 1973. Took some time off in Summer while I was still going to college (not qualified for unemployment benefit).

mP
 
Yes... last year... only a couple of months...

Surprised at how long they pay now... up to 18 months and looking at extending it again...

They had one guy on TV who was a construction supervisor... said he got a total of 2 calls for jobs in his 18 months of unemployment....
 
I have received 1 week of unemployment. I had 4 jobs in my 27 years of programming. The first one I left for greener pastures, and the second I left just ahead of the axe as the company dwindled and was bought out. The third one laid me off, and I could not quite time my new start date exactly - the 2 week gap yielded me a week of unemployment compensation. I retired from my fourth job.
 
I got it during the tech bubble bust. NH pays pretty low, something like $238 a week, which was the max back then. The good news was that I qualified for Trade Act retraining, so got some IT classes and extended unemployment. Ended up taking almost 1.5 years off. Sweet!
 
Not yet. May get the opportunity soon depending on the state of my current employer. Would welcome it. Plenty of free time off!

Our state pays roughly $2300 a month. Not a king's ransom, but it would be enough since we get by on either DW or my salary for basic living expenses. Rumor has it that if one were so inclined, they could pick up some side work under the table and still collect unemployment benefits. Although that would be fraud and I can't encourage fraud. But I have heard of a case or two of people doing just that. I think we get either 57 weeks or 80 weeks due to being in a high unemployment state.

Oddly enough, virtually everyone that I know on unemployment is either indifferent to finding a new job, or actively hoping to continue receiving it and not become employed again. They are all enjoying their time off. All 57-80 weeks of it! It is funny how the government giving you tons of money to remain unemployed causes people to forgo employment.

I think our reporting is done online. There are five questions you have to answer each week to continue getting the UI checks. Stuff like "have you actively looked for work on at least two days in the past week" and "are you receiving income from other sources". Apparently it takes 2 minutes to complete this, then that dole check rolls right on in! :)
 
Yes. When I really needed it, too. That was before websites for the purpose of reporting.

Recently was out of work for 5 months. Could have got it but I was too busy looking for work to mess with the paperwork.

This is an absolutely essential benefit for social stability. I will never get out all I put in, but I am happy to support it.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

G
Severance Package and Unemployment Benefits
Replies
18
Views
2K
oldphd
O
R
SSA - A Good Story
Replies
7
Views
325
mistermike40
mistermike40
sheldon cornped
WF Bonus offer scenario- Opinions needed
Replies
3
Views
307
calmloki
calmloki
S
  • Locked
How dangerous are our streets
Replies
13
Views
450
MichaelB
MichaelB
Amethyst
Federal retirees: Florida Blue denying my claim b/c I don't have Medicare
Replies
23
Views
806
Amethyst
Amethyst

Latest posts

Back
Top Bottom