Unemployment Benefits in General

• Upon losing your job or being terminated from employment, you are entitled to unemployment benefits. Your employer is responsible to pay the cost of unemployment insurance to his state unemployment insurance (UI) agency when an employee is separated. This payment is then put into a fund from which your limited-term UI benefits are paid.
  
  

Qualification for Benefits

• There is a three-part test to determine if your last employment separation is benefit-eligible. These include the aggregate amount of salary you were paid by the particular employer during your tenure, the nature of unemployment, and whether you are proactively looking for a new full-time job. When you apply for UI benefits, the above information will be considered and you will get a response within about seven days confirming or denying your application. If approved, then the notice will also explain when you can expect the monetary benefits to arrive. The benefit will be paid out weekly unless you are in a state that instead provides you a benefit debit card. In that case, the funds are then posted to your benefit account weekly.
  
  

Temp Agency Work and UI Benefits

• UI benefits are meant to provide you financial assistance while you are looking for full-time work. If you obtain work with a temporary placement agency, but the work schedule and hiring is only part-time, then you are still eligible to receive your UI benefits. The benefit amount may be reduced to acknowledge what you are earning, but as a part-time worker you would still get a UI benefit.
  
  

Programs Vary from State to State

• Each state administers its own UI benefit program within the rules established by the federal government. As a result, there are going to be nuances and differences from region to region. Make sure to pay particular attention to your own state's program and application requirements. This is frequently provided in a handbook available from the state UI agency, and many government offices have it in a form that can be downloaded from the Internet.
  
  

Accepting Work Nuance

• Be careful how you handle a temp agency that lowballs your services. If you apply for temp work with a floor of $11 per hour for example, and they offer you $9 with an assignment, you should check your UI agency first to see what impact it will be to your current UI benefits to deny the job. However, also keep in mind that if you turn down too many assignments the temp agency may not call you back again (this usually happens after about three or four denials). So it's a balancing act between maintaining your benefits and getting work again.