Is It Possible to Get a Part-Time Job Without a Job?
With the CARES incentive and subsequent wage loss assistance in the rearview mirror, it has become even more difficult to make ends meet. If you are receiving unemployment benefits, you may be considering a part-time job. But will a job take away your entitlement to benefits?
Not if your part-time job earns less than you receive from unemployment insurance. In fact, you can qualify for what is called partial unemployment, although the amount you get will vary from state to state. (Weekly benefits will be based on a lower percentage of your previous earnings, but how it is calculated also depends on your state.)
How federal programs affect your benefits
Unemployment is run by the federal and state governments, but much of how it will be paid is decided at the state level, with most states offering up to 26 weeks of benefits. Federal CARES Act gave all states 13 additional weeks of federally funded Emergency Unemployment Assistance (PEUC). In addition, workers who would not normally qualify for unemployment were eligible for assistance under the federal pandemic unemployment assistance (PUA) program. However, without new legislation, PEUC and PUA will not be paid after December 31, 2020.
How Side Concert Benefits Vary by State
According to CNBC, states may stop offering additional weeks from PEUC if unemployment continues to improve, and some states have already done so (Alabama, Arkansas, Idaho, Iowa, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, and Wyoming). For a comprehensive overview of how many weeks of benefits each state offers, check out this post on The Street .
In addition, to encourage part-time work, most states exempt a certain amount of your side earnings from accounting for your unemployment benefits. This is known as “earning exclusion” or “neglecting earnings”. For example, if you earned $ 300 a week and the unreported state income is $ 50, only $ 250 of that income will count towards your unemployment benefits under the draft National Employment Act .
In most states, the earnings exclusion is based on a certain percentage of the weekly benefit, while others allow a small, fixed dollar amount (for example, $ 50). There is also a wide range: there is no exemption in Tennessee, and in North Dakota you can keep 60% of the weekly benefit for yourself. This greatly affects how much money you can make by taking your weekly check.
Bottom line
A part-time or part-time job can significantly increase your total income through the use of the earnings exception, but where you live is also important. Because each state calculates your weekly benefit and exemption differently, you need to research your condition to know exactly how your side income compares to your maximum weekly benefit. Since we are still in a pandemic, knowing if the time and risk of other work is another factor to consider. For information on part-time unemployment qualifications in your state, click here .