What is My Base Year Under Pennsylvania's Unemployment Law?

How Long Do I Have to Work For a Company to Get Unemployment in Pennsylvania?

At least 13 weeks, and maybe more depending upon how much you earn each week.  Allow me to explain via a relatively common hypothetical.

Assume that you worked for a Company X for 3 years at a salary of $40,000 until your employment ended on January 1, 2012. 

On April 1, 2012, you find a new job with Company Y paying you w-2 wages in the amount of $500 per week. Unfortunately, Company Y lets you go as part of a lay off on June 30, 2012 (i.e. 12 weeks after you started with Company Y).

You then apply for unemployment in connection with your involuntary lay off from Company Y. 

Under this scenario, and based upon the way your Base Year of earnings is calculated, you have not earned enoungh from Company Y to entitle you to unemployment benefits, because it did not pay you any wages during your Base Year (which, as discussed below, is the last 3 quarters of 2011, and first quarter of 2011, during which time you did not work for Company Y). 

How Does Pennsylvania Unemployment Calculate My Base Year of Wages?

Your Base Year is the first 4 of the last 5 quarters that immediately preceded the date of your separation from your most recent employment. In this scenario, your most recent job ended June 30, 2012 so, in calculating your Base Year earnings, one skips your most recent quarter of earnings (i.e. do not take into account any of your earnings from Company Y, all of which were made during the second quarter of 2012 - i.e. in the most recent of the 5 quarters immediatly preceding your claim).  So, if you had not during the last 5 quarters worked for anyone other than Company Y, then you did not earn enough to qualify for unemployment.

However, you did work for another employer during the relevant time operiod - Company X.  Therefore, even though Company Y may not be charged for your benefits, you may still be eligible for benefits chargeable to Company X or from the unemployment common fund.

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