There are three critical requirements that recipients of Unemployment Compensation benefits must regularly complete in order to maintain the payments throughout their period of unemployment.
First, individuals must file a bi-weekly claim regarding their gross earnings during their entire period of partial or complete unemployed. This is critical in maintaining eligibility for unemployment compensation payments. Benefits are only available for the weeks that are properly claimed by the individual. These claims can be filed online or over the phone with the Pennsylvania Office of Unemployment Compensation. Individuals may continue to file the biweekly claims until their unemployment benefits are exhausted.
If the individual fails to file a bi-weekly claim, officials automatically assume it is because the individual found employment and is no longer in need of benefits. As a result, payments will no longer be issued. This means that late filings, whether by a day or a couple of weeks, require the claim be re-opened in order to restore benefits. Individuals who have filed a late by-weekly claim may re-open their claim with the Office of Unemployment Compensation online, over the phone, or through the mail. To avoid the hassle of re-opening a claim, individuals should be diligent with filings.
The second critical requirement relates to the individual’s work registration. In order to maintain benefits, individuals must register for an employment search program within thirty days of their application for benefits. For most, this is done through registration with PA CareerLink. Individuals must register with the website in order to have access to the employment search. Registration through the site is comprehensive, and individuals will be prompted to put in relevant personal information. Those who have a local labor market which is outside of Pennsylvania must register with that state in order to have access to the local job market.
PA CareerLink, or whichever state employment service that is used, will provide the individual with important employment information, job-search assistance, and applications for hiring companies.
The final critical element to maintaining benefits is the weekly work search requirement outlined by the department. There are several requirements that individuals must meet in order to show that they are active in their employment search. Beginning in the third week of receiving benefits, individuals must apply for two jobs each week. Additionally, individuals must participate in one work search activity each week. Work search activities include a variety of things, including attending a job fair, searching for jobs, networking, taking a pre-employment or civil service test, or participating in a program offered through the PA Career Link system.
Individuals who complete there three regular requirements will be eligible to receive benefits until the service is exhausted or new employment is offered to them.