Working Part-Time While On Unemployment (NJ) - Any risk to lose benefits? (highest, collect)

[DXNJ]

Greetings,

I would appreciate anyone's help. I know in NJ you can work part-time while collecting unemployment and make up to an additional $120 per week. I think that is the correct amount. I may be off a little.

What happens if the amount you are making every week via a part-time job is more than your unemployment? I start a part-time job that pays $16 an hour (better than nothing ) and should consist of 30 to 40 hours of work per week. The downside is the position is temporary (possibly a year). Hopefully, I will find a full-time prior to the position ending.

I remember being told after you earn a total of $2628 you have to re-qualify? Is this true? If so, what is the $2628 based on (i.e the overage you're allowed or all monies earned while working)?

I'm only curious because what happens if I end up losing my benefits then experience a week or two where I'm not working 30 hours and end up making significantly less than what my unemployment would have been?

I hope this is half-way coherent

Thank you in advance!

[Ariadne22]

You will get your answer if you repost this on the Unemployment Forum.

[DXNJ]

yikes, I thought I was in the unemployment forum. I got caught up in employment sorry.

[mary in Tampa]

Did you just start with unemployment? You take part time work. You declare how much you made. Then you wait the process for a human to verify how much you made (yes, wait). Then you get the difference. So if you would get $275 (Florida) in UB, and you worked and made $100, then you would get $175 in benefits. You have a UB account. You don't lose that money, you just don't use it up as fast. So 26 weeks of UB benefits (normal amount) could last you a year or more.

There is a catch. After you have been on benefits for 52 weeks, you get recalculated. They take your highest quarter of earnings and divide it by 26 - and that is your new benefit amount. Quarters are months Jan-Mar, then Apr-June, then Jul-Sep, then Oct-Dec. Florida UB is $275. I got recalculated - down to $115 a week.

[Ariadne22]

Originally Posted by mary in Tampa

There is a catch. After you have been on benefits for 52 weeks, you get recalculated. They take your highest quarter of earnings and divide it by 26 - and that is your new benefit amount. Quarters are months Jan-Mar, then Apr-June, then Jul-Sep, then Oct-Dec. Florida UB is $275. I got recalculated - down to $115 a week.

Actually, they don't effective June 3, 2010, when Congress passed the amended HR4213 in order to remove the penalty for working part time.

Anyone experiencing a reduction of $100 or 25% of their previously weekly benefit as a result of a recalc for a new claim year is now allowed to keep the original claim open and continue to collect their original benefit.

See Section 3:

http://frwebgate.access.gpo.gov/cgi-...213enr.txt.pdf