Your Guide to Unemployment Benefits

Unemployment is the most hated yet imminent phase of life. Nobody likes it, but you cannot run away from it. At the beginning of your career or in the middle of switching careers, everyone has to face it once or more than once in their life. But being unemployed is not completely worthless, the government offers many facilities and benefits to the unemployed to encourage them. Unemployment benefits are the payments made by the state government or authorized bodies to the unemployed. The amount given depends upon the basic need of the person.

The government of the U.S offers many benefits to the unemployed. There are 50 state unemployment insurance programs in the United States. But the benefits in every state differ due to the laws of the state government. Each state has its own unemployment insurance program. The way of filling the form is also different. Some states provide you with toll-free helpline numbers and others ask you to fill online forms. In order to attain the benefits, you have to file for it. But keep in mind that the unemployment insurance is taxable. Every penny you received under it will be counted as your gross income and you have to pay the applied tax on it. All this is done so that people do not lose their morale and don’t give up hope.

Eligibility – There is a certain eligibility criterion which you have to fulfill in order to attain the benefits.

1. First and most important is that you should be legally authorized to work in the U.S.
2. If you are unemployed or removed from your last job due to no fault of your own. For example, if you had a layoff. If you were fired from your last job on the grounds of misconduct or other fault then you are not eligible. Also, if you willfully resign from your last job, it also makes you ineligible.
3. If you are willing to start working when a suitable job is offered without any delay.

Other basic requirements are that you should be available, able and actively seeking for work. These are the basic rules, other than these every state has some of its own rules you need to fill.

One special perk is extended unemployment insurance. It only happens once in a blue moon that is during a high unemployment period. In this, the insurance period is extended to the duration of 13 weeks. Every unemployed person who is receiving insurance is considered for this but is awarded only to a few.

The weekly benefit rate is what you enjoy as employment benefits every week. The amount you will get will be around half of the average weekly earnings based on your past employment history. Within the same country, it will be different for people in different states because every state has its own unemployment program run.

Apart from these, other unemployment benefits, one can enjoy are educational assistance and self-employment assistance, disability insurance, workers insurance  and temporary assistance for needy families.

Self-employs assistance – In this field, the unemployed people had the opportunity of starting their own small business. This is a great opportunity as you can do whatever you choose to do. You will be your own boss and follow your own rules. The purpose of this program is to offer again people a chance of employment with a field of their choice. This work depends on the capabilities of the worker. If they want they can make it a big and successful business with their hard work and dedication. People receive a weekly allowance under this program. This is offered by selected states like Delaware, Mississippi, New Hampshire, New York, and Oregon. In order to enjoy this facility, one must be eligible for regular unemployment insurance. To get it you have to get in contact with your state unemployment insurance agency.

Worker’s compensation – Many times it happens that people get injured on the site while working which can cause permanent damages. Workers’ compensation is for those people. Workers’ compensation is a law which ensures payment of people who get injured or disabled while working at their site. It is for all the companies – private and government. It also provides compensation to the family of the people who had work-related accidents. The time taken in providing the compensation varies from state to state.

Educational assistance – During your unemployment session you are liable to enjoy education and training programs at low cost which is funded by the department of labor. You are up for the Dislocated Worker/Rapid Response, Trade Adjustment Assistance or TAA Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act. All these programs are with the purpose of providing financial aid and new opportunities to the unemployed people. You can learn new skills and technique which gives you experience and makes your resume looks appealing and increases your chances of getting hired.

Disability insurance – When a person is no longer able to earn a living by working due to some kind of disability caused by an accident or other natural causes, then that person and their family are up for disability insurance. There are two types of policy under this category. First is Short-term disability policies which last for the duration of 2 years.  The second type of policy is Long-term disability policies which continue for your entire life. These programs are looked after by the Social Security Administration. These programs make sure that if the bread earner of the family faces disability then their family does not face any financial crisis.

Temporary assistance for needy families – This program is for the families suffering from problems like heavy financial loss or natural extreme poverty. The people who qualify for this program are provided with food, house, job training, childcare, etc. These are temporary benefits provided through your local or county social services agency. In order to be eligible for this program you should be resident of the state where you are applying.