What You Need To Do Before Going To the Unemployment Office
If you're thinking about heading down to your local unemployment office to file a claim, you may not need to, however you will need to gather important documents to make the process as easy as possible. Most states determine your unemployment benefits by specific "base periods." These base periods change from time to time and your benefits will be based upon the wages that you received in that period. This means you may need to have payroll stubs or W-2's from the previous year. This can present a problem if you have direct deposit, so prepare in advance. Depending upon your reason for seeking unemployment you may need to prepare a statement- and possibly give the statement to an interviewer or submit it online.
Other helpful websites
Before you file a claim
Below is a list of each unemployment website, specific to each state. Before you file a claim please visit your states OFFICIAL unemployment website (most states allow you to file online.):
- Alabama
- Alaska
- Arizona
- Arkansas
- California
- Colorado
- Connecticut
- Delaware
- District of Columbia
- Florida
- Georgia
- Hawaii
- Idaho
- Illinois
- Indiana
- Iowa
- Kansas
- Kentucky
- Louisiana
- Maine
- Maryland
- Massachusetts
- Michigan
- Minnesota
- Mississippi
- Missouri
- Montana
- Nebraska
- Nevada
- New Hampshire
- New Jersey
- New Mexico
- New York
- North Carolina
- North Dakota
- Ohio
- Oklahoma
- Oregon
- Pennsylvania
- Rhode Island
- South Carolina
- South Dakota
- Tennessee
- Texas
- Utah
- Vermont
- Virginia
- Washington
- West Virginia
- Wisconsin
- Wyoming
Other territories:
*Guam does not have any unemployment benefit programs, however they do have a "One-Stop Care Center."
More Information
If you have any questions about what to do don't hesitate to visit your local unemployment office. You'll find ample resources to utilize in your career or job search and in most cases have access to computers and training services.