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Pennsylvania Unemployment Insurance

July 27th, 2006 Posted by Nicole

Every state handles its own unemployment insurance, while staying under Federal guidelines for the procedure. Across the board, all states have basic rules within their laws that are generally similar. The major difference that I found between the states is that some of the states off much higher rates and weekly allowances than others.

The part of the law that is fairly common across the states is the following:
1. You must have first been employed in order to collect unemployment benefits. This employment must have also had some sort of base period associated with it over an established period of time.
2. You must be currently unemployed due to no fault of your own. For example, if you quit your job, then you are not eligible for unemployment. However, if you were fired or laid off, then you may be able to collect unemployment, as long as you are not at fault or willingly unemployed.
3. Once you begin to collect unemployment, it is essential that you continue to file claims with the agency. You must also respond to any questions that the state poses of you in regards to your unemployment status. If you are offered a job that you decline, you should be able to explain why you declined the job.
4. If there are other unemployment requirements for the Pennsylvania system, then you must meet them.

The minimum amount of money that you can collect while on unemployment is $35-43. Pennsylvania has one of the most generous unemployment plans as well. You may collect up to $469 in benefits. You may collect for up to 26 weeks and can be taxed on $8,000 of your earnings.

Keep in mind that you must prove that you are actively seeking employment even if you are unemployed. You must file weekly and prove that you’re making a diligent effort to earn a living.

Pennsylvania’s unemployment insurance laws are detailed on the Pennsylvania Complete Labor Law poster. This one poster contains all the state, federal, and OSHA laws.