When a person loses their job, it is extremely important to figure out the next steps for their future. This can mean looking for a new job or an entirely new career. At the same time, of course, the person still has bills to pay. Unemployment insurance benefits are intended to bridge a person’s gap in income when they are between jobs.
If a person was employed in Kansas before they lost their employment, they may qualify for weekly unemployment benefits through the Kansas Department of Labor.
In order to obtain unemployment benefits, a person must have lost their most recent employment through no fault of their own. The person cannot have lost their job because of something that they did or did not do. They must also register to find a new job and be able and available to work.
In order to be entitled to these benefits, a person must have worked for an employer who pays unemployment insurance. They must also have earned income in two or more quarters during their base period, which consists of four financial quarters. Their total base period has to be thirty times their weekly earnings.
There are some jobs that are excluded from the Kansas unemployment system under the Employment Security Act. Some of these workers include real estate agents working only on commission, church employees, those working for certain family members, and independent contractors.
A person does not qualify for unemployment if they separated from their employment for the following reasons:
A person can file a claim for unemployment insurance online or by phone. When a person files, they need to have their social security number, full mailing address, phone number, and the name of the county in which they live. A person must provide their last employer’s name, address, the day they started work, the day they stopped working there, and the reason why they left that job.
Additionally, a person needs to list their driver’s license number, state ID number, or, if the person is not a citizen, their employment authorization number and expiration date. If a person’s last job was with the military, they must be able to provide your DD-214, Member #4 form. In the same manner, if their last job was with the federal government, they need to provide their Standard Form SF-50 or a pay stub.
Furthermore, if a person is in a position to receive any vacation or severance pay from their former employer, they must disclose that.
A person who is granted benefits must file a weekly claim for payment for each week that they want to receive their benefits. Payments are made if the person has met all of the requirements for eligibility.
A person’s claim becomes inactive if they have not filed a weekly claim for payment or if they have not had any other activity on their claim for 14 calendar days. If a person is eligible for a benefit payment, they receive their benefit in the form of a Visa® debit card by mail.
If a person has already been receiving unemployment benefits and let it lapse before exhausting their benefits, then they need to reopen their claim if they wish to continue to receive benefits. If they have worked in the interim, then they are required to list any places they have worked since they made their initial application.
Kansas sets the number of weeks a person can receive unemployment insurance benefits depending on the average unemployment rate in the state at the time. If the unemployment rate is less than 4.5%, a person is only entitled to 16 weeks of unemployment benefits.
In the future, if unemployment is at 4.5% but less than 6%, a person may receive up to 20 weeks. If unemployment is at 6% or higher, then a person can get benefits for as many as 26 weeks. Additionally, for one week after a person has applied for unemployment insurance benefits, they will not be entitled to any benefits. It is only after a person has satisfied this unpaid week requirement that they will receive benefits.
To remain eligible for benefits, a person has to file a weekly claim either online or on the phone. In that claim, the person is asked if they have received any pay, refused any work, or attended school or training that week. They are also asked if they have looked for work either online or through the Kansas Unemployment Contact Center.
A person may receive some benefits for a week in which they work less than full-time and earn less than the amount of their weekly unemployment benefit.
A person may earn up to 25 percent of the amount of their weekly unemployment without a reduction to their unemployment benefits. Any earnings over 25 percent of the weekly unemployment benefit are deducted from their unemployment benefits on a dollar-for-dollar basis.
A person must report their gross wages and not their take-home pay. This includes any wages received as a reservist for weekend drills and annual training participation.
A person must report all of their wages from employment during the week when the wages are earned and not when the employer pays the wages.
In some cases, a person may be able to receive benefits without having to search for a job if they are enrolled in a training program. If a person is in an approved program, then they have to send in a Progress in Approved Training Report form every 4 weeks to show that they are making satisfactory progress in their training program.
A person may be able to receive additional financial assistance in the form of a Trade Readjustment Allowance (TRA) under the Trade Adjustment Assistance program (TAA), which is a federal program. The people who are entitled to a TRA are workers who are enrolled in an approved training program as a result of their former employment being negatively impacted by foreign imports.
So, the TRA would not be of help to every unemployed worker. Those who cannot benefit from the TAA would want to find out from the Kansas Department of Labor whether there are other training and job search programs that might help them. And, of course, they want to continue their own job search efforts.
If a person is denied benefits and disagrees with the denial, they may file an appeal within 16 days of the denial with the Kansas Department of Labor. The person has the right to have a lawyer represent them in their appeal to the DOL.
If the person does not win that appeal, they may appeal again to the Employment Security Board of Review. Then, if the Board denies their appeal, they may file a lawsuit in a court of general jurisdiction if they think that their appeal was wrongly denied.
If you have lost your job and believe you are entitled to unemployment benefits, you want to consult a Kansas unemployment lawyer.
LegalMatch.com can quickly connect you to a lawyer who can help you apply for unemployment benefits. If you have applied and have been denied benefits, your lawyer can tell you how to appeal the decision and can represent you on appeal if that should become necessary.
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