Can I Draw Partial Unemployment in Texas?

The Texas Unemployment Compensation Act establishes the rights that claimants have for receiving unemployment benefits. Under the Texas Unemployment Compensation Act, the Texas Workforce Commission can provide benefits to partially unemployed workers in addition to totally unemployed workers.

In Texas, unemployed or partially employed applicants are eligible for benefits if they are unemployed or partially employed through no fault of their own, continue to look for other work and report all hours worked each week they apply for unemployment insurance benefits. As codified in Title 4 of the Texas Labor Code, Subtitle A, the state limits unemployment benefits to workers who are actively engaged in searching for other work and were not terminated for cause and did not voluntarily terminate employment without good cause.

Unemployment benefits in Texas are limited to 26 weeks in one benefit year. After claimants exhaust their state benefits, they are eligible for federal unemployment emergency benefits. Claimants can receive benefits if they are employed on a part-time basis, but the state can reduce their benefits. Under Texas law, claimants can work up to 25 percent of their weekly benefit amount before the state will reduce their benefits' allowance.

Since the Texas Workforce Commission allows claimants to work part-time, the commission can reduce their benefits after they earn one-quarter of their weekly unemployment claim. If their weekly part-time earnings exceed 25 percent of their weekly benefits, the state will reduce their benefits dollar-for-dollar by the amount exceeding 25 percent. If their reduction plus their weekly earnings equals or exceeds their weekly benefits, they will not be eligible for benefits during those weeks. Additionally, the state will require them to report job separations during employment while receiving benefits, and if they were terminated for cause or quit without valid cause, the state may deny future benefits.

Claimants must report all of their gross earnings, not net earnings, each week they submit a claim for benefits. In other words, claimants must report their earnings as they are earned, and not the date of payment for each workweek beginning Sunday and ending on Saturday. Claimants cannot receive benefits if they work full-time in a customary occupation, according to their employment training and job history, even though their earnings are less than their weekly benefits.

Since state laws can frequently change, do not use this information as a substitute for legal advice. Seek advice through an attorney licensed to practice law in your state.