More Americans applied for unemployment benefits last week, but layoffs remained historically low, despite the Federal Reserve’s efforts to slow the economy and hiring in order to reduce inflation.
The Labor Department said Thursday that applications for jobless benefits in the United States increased by 13,000 last week to 196,000, up from 183,000 the previous week. This is the fourth week in a row that claims have been less than 200,000.
Layoffs have been relatively minimal since the pandemic wiped off millions of employees in the spring of 2020, according to jobless claims. Here’s what newly unemployed employees should know about benefits:
Unemployment Benefits Qualifications
According to Michele Evermore, a senior fellow at The Century Foundation, in order to qualify for unemployment benefits, you must have been laid off through no fault of your own.
In some jurisdictions, for example, you may be eligible for the benefit if you chose to leave your job after your employer asked you to transfer to a place where your commute would be too long, or if your partner’s job was transferred.
Some states can take weeks to approve your claim, so the sooner you file, the better. While most states require a one-week waiting period before beginning to pay benefits, you do not have to wait to request relief.
Read more: SNAP benefits: Texas Lone Star Card payments February schedule
Where To Apply?
Fill out an application with your state’s unemployment agency. An application can usually be submitted online or over the phone. To obtain and continue to receive unemployment benefits, you must be able to work and actively seek new employment.
You’ll have to call the state unemployment office on a regular basis and report what jobs you’ve applied for. When applying for assistance, make sure you understand any criteria in your state.
The standard length of unemployment compensation is 26 weeks, but this varies by state. Unemployment benefits are normally available for a set number of weeks per benefit year.
Depending on how long it has been since your last spell of unemployment and how many weeks you previously got benefits, you may be able to qualify for benefits again following a subsequent job loss for at least a few weeks, if not the entire length.