How Do I Know If I Am Eligible for Texas Unemployment?
Although most people in Texas do not ever plan to get laid off, economic and company events can cause senior leaders to sever workers' employment. If you suspect that you might get laid off, or even if you have already received a severance notice, before you contact the Texas Workforce Commission you can find out if you are eligible to receive unemployment insurance benefits.
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Instructions
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Contact the Texas Workforce Commission to apply for unemployment insurance benefits after you are laid off. You must provide the commission with your name, address and last date of employment. Additional information that you must provide the commission is the names and addresses of all employers you worked for during the past 18 months. The commission will contact your employers to verify that you worked for them. They will also get the gross wages that you earned from each employer and the reason that you were released from your job. Generally, if your job loss was your fault (e.g. you stole company property) you cannot receive unemployment insurance benefits in Texas. However, if you left your job because your spouse's job relocated or because your employer committed illegal acts (e.g. sexually harassed you) the state might allow you to collect the benefits.
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Verify that you worked in covered employment. If you worked for one or more employers that are required to pay unemployment insurance taxes in Texas, you worked in covered employment. Although most jobs are considered covered employment, jobs like babysitting, doing work at home for your parents or self-employment are generally not considered covered employment in Texas.
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Confirm that you worked during the first four of the last five quarters. The Texas Workforce Commission considers this your base period. The commission will review the amount of gross wages you earned during the base period to calculate your weekly unemployment insurance benefits. For example, to arrive at the amount of money you will receive in your weekly unemployment insurance benefits check, the commission will divide the gross wages you earned in the highest quarter of your base period by 25 then round the number to the nearest dollar. This final number is what you will receive in your weekly unemployment insurance benefits check. Furthermore, during your base period you must earn at least 37 times your weekly benefits check.
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Complete weekly certification. On the certification, indicate whether you sought permanent employment. Also indicate if you moved or changed your telephone number. Information you provide on your certifications is used by the Texas Workforce Commission to determine whether you continue to qualify to receive unemployment insurance benefits in the state. For example, if you report that you did not seek employment during the week, you might lose your benefits.
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Accept suitable employment. You cannot turn down job offers that are suitable for your work experience and that are similar to previous jobs you held. Failure to accept suitable employment can cause your unemployment insurance benefits claim to be disqualified. For example, if you are working a temporary job and you are offered a permanent role at the organization, should you turn the offer down you can lose your unemployment insurance benefits in Texas.
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References
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