NY Unemployment benefits DENIED! Help please! (collect, file, claim, qualify)

[ginakc]

On April 26 2012 I was let go from my job in NY. They had let me go on June, 2011 and rehired me. Well, there was no way I could pay all my bills on unemployment so I decided to move to FL to live with my brother. I got a job here on March 2013 but yet again I was laid off on the beginning of this month.

I re-certified my claim on for the NY unemployment because I still had a week left for that claim. But the following week I decided to file a new claim with NY. I was told by various representative that it didn't matter that I had worked here last and was given the impression that the wages I made here were going to be taken into consideration as well.

I just got a letter saying it was denied because I haven't work 2 quarters and the only wages there are from my job in NY. It has the name for my job here but it says I made $0 wages. Is this a mistake or are the wages I made here not valid? If they aren't, why is the name of the job even there?

I'm really freaking out as I have no money, can anyone please help me understand this? PLEASE!

[Chyvan]

Just because NY denied you doesn't mean that you're not eligible for a claim in FL, and it also doesn't mean that there isn't some EUC from another claim.

You going to have to post your earnings history, and claim history for anyone to make any sense of it, and you'll have to go way back like two or more years for a complete and accurate picture.

[Ariadne22]

Unless you have uncollected EUC on either of your NY claims (2011 or 2012), you have exhausted your NY benefits.

At this point, there are no NY wages for NY to establish yet another requalifying claim. Whoever told you that NY would use your FL wages to open yet another claim when you haven't worked in NY since 6/2012 is wrong.

It appears from the foregoing you had two NY claims:

6/2011-6/2012
6/2012-6/2013 (established because you worked during your first benefit year at previous NY employer)

Again, you have not worked in NY since 6/2012. When NY recertified your 6/2011 claim, it used whatever earnings you had in NY during your first benefit year 6/2011-6/2012 to establish another claim which has now expired.

If you file for benefits in FL now, FL will use a base period of April 2012-March 2013, excluding your FL earnings from 4/2013 to date. You don't qualify in FL at all at this point, it would not appear, unless by some remote chance there remain NY earnings on which FL might base a combined wage claim (unlikely):

• • Have been paid wages in two or more calendar quarters in the base period;
  • Have total base period wages of at least 1-1/2 times the wages in the quarter having the highest earnings;
  • Have at least $3,400 total wages in the base period.

So, the questions are:
1. Did you ever collect EUC benefits on your NY claims?
2. If so, were those benefits exhausted?

Often if a new claim is opened at the bye, assuming you've begun EUC from your first claim, you can go back to that claim to collect what remains.

3. Or, did the 2nd NY claim qualify for EUC?

[oberon_1]

Wow Ariadne, I am impressed by you knowledge. Since I know nothing about these issues, could you please explain:
1) What are EUC benefits?
2) Why his earnings in FL in the April-June quarter won't been considered? We are in 3rd quarter already...

[ginakc]

I worked in NY from June, 2009 to June, 2011. I applied for unemployment July, 2011 and was approved $384 weekly.
Got rehired on Feb 27 but was let go on April 2012- recertified my claim and kept getting it until the year ended on July 9th, 2012. I filed a new claim and was approved $384 again. That claim ended on July 14, 2013 but since I was laid off from my job here in FL (worked March 10-July6) I was able to get 1 week from my last claim.

That is when I applied for a new claim and got denied.

[Ariadne22]

Originally Posted by oberon_1

Wow Ariadne, I am impressed by you knowledge. Since I know nothing about these issues, could you please explain:
1) What are EUC benefits?
2) Why his earnings in FL in the April-June quarter won't been considered? We are in 3rd quarter already...

Heh - well, Chyvan said the same thing in many fewer words.

1. EUC - federal Emergency Unemployment Compensation benefits.

2. Because FL, along with many other states, does NOT provide for alternate base periods and only uses the standard method.

FL is ONE OF THE WORST states in which to be applying for UE benefits. That state pays - at most $275/mo, right now for only 17 weeks (b/c length of benefits is tied to UE rate), and FL does not try to create eligibility through alternate base periods. FL is not a claimant-friendly state at all.

Fwiw, FL calls its unemployment benefit program "Reemployment Assistance Insurance."

[ginakc]

Originally Posted by Ariadne22

Unless you have uncollected EUC on either of your NY claims (2011 or 2012), you have exhausted your NY benefits.

At this point, there are no NY wages for NY to establish yet another requalifying claim. Whoever told you that NY would use your FL wages to open yet another claim when you haven't worked in NY since 6/2012 is wrong.

It appears from the foregoing you had two NY claims:

6/2011-6/2012
6/2012-6/2013 (established because you worked during your first benefit year at previous NY employer)

Again, you have not worked in NY since 6/2012. When NY recertified your 6/2011 claim, it used whatever earnings you had in NY during your first benefit year 6/2011-6/2012 to establish another claim which has now expired.

If you file for benefits in FL now, FL will use a base period of April 2012-March 2013, excluding your FL earnings from 4/2013 to date. You don't qualify in FL at all at this point, it would not appear, unless by some remote chance there remain NY earnings on which FL might base a combined wage claim (unlikely): So, the questions are:
1. Did you ever collect EUC benefits on your NY claims?
2. If so, were those benefits exhausted?

Often if a new claim is opened at the bye, assuming you've begun EUC from your first claim, you can go back to that claim to collect what remains.

3. Or, did the 2nd NY claim qualify for EUC?

When I filed my 2nd claim, for some reason I started getting paid as if it was a brand new claim, starting the 26 weeks all over again even though I had not exhausted all of my EUC. And I only got paid 36 weeks on my 2nd year.

The last quarter does not count? Which from what I can see is from 04/01-06/30.

[ginakc]

Originally Posted by Ariadne22

Heh - well, Chyvan said the same thing in many fewer words.

1. EUC - federal Emergency Unemployment Compensation benefits.

2. Because FL, along with many other states, does NOT provide for alternate base periods and only uses the standard method.

FL is ONE OF THE WORST states in which to be applying for UE benefits. That state pays - at most $275/mo, right now for only 17 weeks (b/c length of benefits is tied to UE rate), and FL does not try to create eligibility through alternate base periods. FL is not a claimant-friendly state at all.

Fwiw, FL calls its unemployment benefit program "Reemployment Assistance Insurance."

Ok I get. According to them I made 3317.97 on the first quarter (04/01-06/30 of 2012) and then it doesn't have any other wages but I did make at least 600 during the month of March and I guess w.e I made from 04/01-06/30 doesn't count which really sucks because it's when I made the most money.

[Ariadne22]

Originally Posted by ginakc

I worked in NY from June, 2009 to June, 2011. I applied for unemployment July, 2011 and was approved $384 weekly.
Got rehired on Feb 27 but was let go on April 2012- recertified my claim and kept getting it until the year ended on July 9th, 2012. I filed a new claim and was approved $384 again. That claim ended on July 14, 2013 but since I was laid off from my job here in FL (worked March 10-July6) I was able to get 1 week from my last claim.

That is when I applied for a new claim and got denied.

Did the 2nd NY claim provide a state benefit of 26 weeks, as well?

Call NY back and ask about unexhausted EUC on your first two claims.

You clearly began EUC on the 2011 claim, but at 6/2012 there should have been remaining at least another 28 weeks to collect.

05 wks Tier 1
14 wks Tier 2
09 wks Tier 3

Without knowing the length of your 2nd claim, it is hard to estimate how much EUC from that first claim remains, since that it what you were drawing on 2012-2013.

Also, did the 2nd claim qualify for EUC. Many do.

It is possible your EUC from the first claim was exhausted and the 2nd claim did not qualify. But, you need to find out.

[Ariadne22]

Originally Posted by ginakc

When I filed my 2nd claim, for some reason I started getting paid as if it was a brand new claim, starting the 26 weeks all over again even though I had not exhausted all of my EUC. And I only got paid 36 weeks on my 2nd year.

The 2nd claim didn't provide 36 weeks' NY benefits. At most it provided 26 weeks.

Originally Posted by ginakc

Ok I get. According to them I made 3317.97 on the first quarter (04/01-06/30 of 2012) and then it doesn't have any other wages but I did make at least 600 during the month of March and I guess w.e I made from 04/01-06/30 doesn't count which really sucks because it's when I made the most money.

Your base year earnings should appears as follows:

7/2011 Claim - April 2010-March 2011
7/2012 Claim - April 2011-June 2012 (includes new earnings)

All your NY earnings should have been used.

The question still remains - are there any unexhausted EUC benefits from either claim? If so, you are entitled to them.