Rules for Collecting Unemployment in Virginia
The U.S. Department of Labor partners with each of the 50 states to create the Unemployment Compensation Program. Although the Federal government sets the mandates, each state is responsible for running and maintaining its own program. The State of Virginia's program is powered by the Virginia Employment Commission.
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Qualifications
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The unemployment benefits program is designed to assist workers who have found themselves unemployed through no fault of their own, have been laid off or have been subject to greatly reduced working hours. While resigning your position does not immediately disqualify you for benefits, you must show that your position became a threat to your overall health or the position was not as contracted. Also, to qualify for unemployment benefits, the State of Virginia requires that you earn at least $2,700 in the past two quarters of the base period. The base period is considered the past 12 months prior to job separation. In essence, the state reviews at least six months of the 12-month period for claims processing. Each claim is subject to approval regardless of the reason for separation.
Application
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The application for unemployment benefits can completed in the local offices of the Virginia Employment Commission and online. While you are able to complete your application by phone, this option is not available throughout all areas of Virginia. To complete your application, you must provide your Social Security number, accurate employer information, including supervisor's name, employer's address, phone number and dates of employment within the last 18 months. You must also select your payment method. The options are a debit card issued by the state or direct deposit into your checking account. Should you choose the checking account option, you must provide your routing number and account number.
Weekly Claims
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In order to maintain your weekly benefits, you must file a weekly claim with the Virginia Employment Commission. To meet the weekly claim requirements, you must actively seek employment with at least two employers each week, not refuse employment when offered and report any changes in income or assets. This information is reported to the commission each week by phone. During the filing process, you will contact the employment line and answer a series of 15 questions that will gather information about your week's progress in obtaining new employment. You must stay on the line until the system announces that it is time to disconnect. As long as you continue to meet the eligibility requirements, you will be issued a weekly deposit of your qualified amount. The amount of benefit, as well as the duration of the benefits are determined by the amount of wages earned with the previous employer over the past two quarters. Benefits can range from 12 to 26 weeks.
Emergency Unemployment Compensation
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Emergency unemployment compensation is available to qualified individuals in the State of Virginia. In order to qualify, individuals must have exhausted their regular benefits and extended benefits as issued by the state. Additionally, the exhausted benefits must apply to benefit years after May 1, 2007. In order to streamline the understanding of the Emergency Unemployment Compensation program, the State of Virginia sent more than 18,000 applications to individuals that meet the basic requirements. These applications were issued on June 23 and June 24 of 2009. If you receive the application and still meet the minimum requirements, complete and return the signed application including any additional information listed on your forms. The Virginia Employment Commission will provide a response and decision within five weeks of receipt. Should you receive a denial for regular or emergency benefits, you have the right to appeal the decision. To appeal, you must follow the appeal instructions that are listed on your denial letter.
Contact
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Due to high volume, the Virginia Employment Commission requests that you follow certain contact procedures. The state requests that you seek assistance online before contacting the department. The website provides an array of information that addresses many potential questions and situations. You can also file a claim online. If you require the assistance of representative, the commission requests that you contact the center based on your Social Security number. If you Social Security number ends with an odd number, you are requested to call on Monday, Wednesday or Friday. If your Social Security number ends with an even number, the commission requests that you call on Tuesday, Thursday or Friday. The commission ensures that the contact process will not delay or adversely affect the processing of your claim or benefit amounts.
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