How to Apply for Unemployment Benefits

In 2008, 2.6 million Americans lost their jobs, marking the worst losses since 1945. In the last week of January, 626,000 people applied for unemployment benefits – many for the first time. Many hard-working adults are suddenly faced with survival for the first time as anxiety sets in. Parents worry how they can feed their children, pay for their homes, cover their monthly payments and re-train to find a new job.

To buy a little time during the crisis, state unemployment benefits are available.

Video: Unemployment is a Serious Economic Problem

To apply for benefits, you must contact your local state unemployment insurance office. Then you will need to fill out a claim application that includes your contact, employer and income information. You should file for unemployment right away because you can only receive benefits starting at the time of filing and it usually takes two or three weeks to receive your first check. Many states now offer online applications to make the process easier for you.

What You Need To Get Unemployment Benefits

To be eligible for unemployment benefits, you must meet certain criterion, which varies from state to state. For instance, in New York State, claimants must have earned at least $1,600 in wages and worked at least two quarters of the last five calendar quarters. You will not be eligible if you lost employment due to: committing a felony, you cannot work due to disability, you were striking, you’re freelancing, you were receiving holiday pay rather than working or if you’re a teacher on vacation.

When you visit the unemployment office, you should bring the following materials with you:

-Full Mailing Address
-Social Security Number
-Driver’s License or State ID
-Veteran / Military Separation Date
-Union Information
-Mother’s Maiden Name
-Last Employer’s Name, Address, Phone Number
-Employer’s Federal ID Number (from your W2 Tax Statement or Pay Stub)
- Employment Date Started & Terminated
-Amount Earned
-Previous Employer Information for the Last 2 Years

Length & Amount of Benefits

As of January 2000, the benefit rate is one-twenty-sixth of the worker’s highest wages. For instance, if you made $400/week and worked 52 weeks of the last year. Your benefits would likely be $240/week for 26 weeks. Benefits range from $64/week to $405/week, with the national average hovering around $300 weekly.

No benefits will be paid the week after filing, which is considered a “waiting week.” While the length of benefits varies slightly by state, most unemployment insurance lasts for a period of 26 weeks, with a possible 13 week extension (in states that are suffering high job losses). Some states even offer an additional 7 weeks (for a total extension of 20 weeks). During your unemployment, you must continue to file weekly claims and update your record for continued eligibility.

Paying Taxes on Unemployment Wages

Surprise – you must pay taxes on your unemployment benefits! Those taxes will not automatically be taken out, so you will either need to take it upon yourself to set aside some of the money, hope you have more money later when tax time arrives or fill out a voluntary request form that asks the IRSto automatically take 10% of your wages from your check (out of sight, out of mind!). 

Where to Find Employment Opportunities

Naturally, your first stop should be the unemployment office, where they may be able to refer you to agencies specific to your industry or redirect you to a local career training center. Many Americans are shunning newspapers in favor of online job hunting. Each state has a job exchange site where you can find local employment opportunities.

Video: How to Find a Job

Additionally, there are job finder sites such as: Monster.com, Craigslist.org, Careerbuilder.com, LinkedIn.com, HotJobs.Yahoo.com, Indeed.com, SimplyHired.com, Dice.com, SnagAJob.com, JobCentral.com, CollegeRecruiter.com, TrueCareers.com and BestJobsUSA.com. You can also visit QuintCareers.com to find job search sites by industry, such as: education, airlines, green collar, arts, computers, science, hospitality, sports, health care, business and law.

Industries and Careers Hiring In 2009

Despite the sharp and sudden economic downturn, there is still a silver lining. Many careers are actually thriving in this volatile market and provide promising opportunities. Here are some of the top industries and careers for 2009.

Health care: From January to August 2008, the health care industry added: 117,000 ambulatory care jobs, 92,700 hospital positions, 19,600 nursing facility jobs and 20,000 mental health counselors. With the baby boomers aging, this field is likely to continue growing for years to come. 

Government: Currently the government employs 1.8 million civilians, not including the US postal service. So far, 46,000 new jobs have been added in state and local government and a recent report by economic advisors Christina Romer and Jared Bernstein said that 244,000 government jobs will be created in the coming years. Jobs are expected to grow in areas like border security, emergency preparedness, information analysis and public health.

Computers: Network systems and data communication analysts, network and communication system administrators, database administrators and computer applications software engineers are likely to be hot jobs for years to come. With everyone online these days, businesses need trained professionals who can meet their day to day needs in terms of managing systems, creating more useful applications, ensuring security, repairing and building computers. Projected growth is as high as 55% in some areas. 

Green collar jobs: Energy efficiency builders, solar power installers, wind turbine fabricators, foresters, farmers, conservation biologists, green entrepreneurs / consultants, recyclers, sustainability systems developers and urban planners will be some of the eco-friendly positions opening up under the new administration, reports Fast Company magazine.

For college grads, the most in-demand professions are: accountants (try PricewaterhouseCoopers, Ernst & Young, Deloitte & Touch, KPMG or the IRS), inner city teachers (at Teach For America), managers (try Enterprise Rent-A-Car), health education volunteers (at the Peace Corps) and community service graduates (try AmeriCorps).

For older works, USNews says the top jobs include: home-care aides, personal financial advisers, veterinarians, community service managers, entertainment attendants, surveyors and cartographers, geoscientists, registered nurses, animal trainers, instructional coordinators, locksmiths, postsecondary teachers, museum curators, social workers, management analysts, pharmacists, counselors, business operations specialists, brokerage clerks and religious workers. 

According to CNN Money Magazine, there are a number of companies that have at least 350 positions open right now! So if you’re hot on the job trail, check out the following companies, positions and top employing regions:

1. Edward Jones – Financial Advisors, Branch Office Administrators (MO, AZ)
2. Google - Engineering, marketing, product management, people operations, legal, sales (CA, NY)
3. Wegmans – Grocery clerks (NY)
4. Cisco Systems – Engineers (CA, NC, MA)
5. Genentech - Commercial, product development, manufacturing, CFO group and legal (CA)
6. Methodist Hospital – Management, Nursing, Clinical, IT, HR, Entry Level (TX)
7. Whole Foods Market – Administrative, IT, Retail, Non-retail (TX, NY, IL)
8. Microsoft – software design engineers, financial analysts, human resources, administrative, sales (WA, CA)
9. Burns & McDonnell – Engineers, Architects, Construction Workers (MO, IL, TX)
10. Ernst & Young – Tax, Law, Assurance, Advisory (NY, IL, TX)
11. Booz Allen Hamilton – Software and Systems Engineers (VA)
12. KPMG – IT, Administrative Assistants, Tax Professionals, Auditors (NY, NJ, IL)
13. PricewaterhouseCoopers – Assurance, Tax and Advisory (NY, MA, FL)
14. Scripps Health – Executives, Managers, Nurses, Imaging Techs, Pharmacists, Support (CA)
15. Mayo Clinic – Nursing, Lab techs, Health care professionals, Pharmacists, Therapists (MN, FL, AZ)
16. Baptist Health – All areas, RNs, Clerical, Administrative staff(FL)
17. Bright Horizons – School staff, Payroll, Property Management, Marketing, Sales, Managers (GA, DC, MA)
18. Publix Super Markets – Retail, Manufacturing, Distribution, Support (FL)
19. T-Mobile – Retail, Customer Service, Legal Affairs, Product Development, Marketing, HR (WA, TX)
20. Accenture – IT Professionals, Java, J2EE, Finance, Sales (IL, VA, NY)

Unemployment Office Contact Numbers by State:

Alabama: 866-234-5382
Alaska: (907) 465-5552
Arizona: (602) 542-4910
Arkansas: (501) 907-2590
California: (800) 300-5616
Colorado: (303) 318-9000
Connecticut: 1- 800-842-9710
Delaware:  (800) 794-3032
Florida: (800) 204-2418
Georgia: (404) 232-3990
Hawaii: (877) 215-5793
Idaho: (208) 332-3570
Illinois: (888) 367-4382
Indiana: (800) 891-6499
Iowa: (515) 281-5387
Kansas: 1-877-665-4457
Kentucky: (800) 648-6057
Louisiana: (866) 783-5567
Maine: (800) 593-7660
Maryland: (877) 293-4125 
Massachusetts: (617) 626-6800
Michigan: (866) 500-0017
Minnesota: (877) 898-9090
Mississippi: (601) 321-6000
Missouri: (573) 751-3215
Montana: (406) 444-2545
Nebraska: (877) 725-9918
Nevada:  (888) 890-8211
New Hampshire: (603) 224-3311
New Jersey: (609) 292-7162
New Mexico: (505) 841-4000
New York: (888) 209-8124
North Carolina: (919) 707-1290
North Dakota: (701) 328-4995
Ohio: (877) 852-0010
Oklahoma: (405) 557-7100
Oregon: (800) 982-8920
Pennsylvania: (888) 313-7284
Rhode Island: 9401) 243-9100
South Carolina: (866) 831-1724
South Dakota: (605) 626-2452
Tennessee: (877) 813-0950
Texas: (800) 939-6631
Utah: (888) 848-0688
Vermont: (802) 828-3657
Virginia: (804) 786-1485
Washington: (800) 318-6022
West Virginia: (304) 558-2624
Wisconsin: (608) 266-3100
Wyoming: (307) 235-3277

Send this page to a friend ...

Enter friend's email address