lwd.dol.state.nj.us - File For Unemployment Benefits In New Jersey

Unemployment insurance is a form of temporary income that is provided by the New Jersey Department of Labor and Workforce Development to workers who have become unemployed through no fault of their own. To be eligible for unemployment benefits in New Jersey an applicant must be a New Jersey resident, all of his employment must be in New Jersey for the 18 months prior to applying for benefits, and he must have earned a minimum of $7,500 or worked 20 consecutive weeks prior to seeking unemployment.

At first sure you are filing for unemployment benefits with the appropriate state. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, more than 12% of NJ residents work out of state. If you live in NJ but worked in another state, you may not be eligible for unemployment benefits in NJ. Call the unemployment office in the state where you were employed to determine where you should file. For example, if you live in NJ and worked in NY, call the NY unemployment office for out-of-state residents at 1-877-358-5306. A representative should be able to tell you if you should file in NY or NJ. The resources section below contains links to information about how to apply for unemployment benefits in PA, NY, and CT.

Then determine if you are eligible for unemployment benefits. To qualify for unemployment you must be a New Jersey resident, have earned a minimum of $7,500 or worked 20 consecutive weeks prior to seeking unemployment, and be unemployed through no fault of your own.

A base week is a calendar week in the base period, which is the 12-month period prior to the applicant's job loss. This 12-month period contains 4 of the 5 calendar quarters that are used to determine an applicant's weekly benefit. A more detailed explanation is given in a claimant manual published by the New Jersey Department of Labor and Workforce Development. It can be found in the lwd.dol.state.nj.us

In order to qualify for unemployment a worker must be involuntarily unemployed. A worker is involuntarily unemployed if he is laid off, let go because of downsizing or a company shutdown, or his union initiated a strike. A worker who quit or was fired may also be eligible for unemployment benefits, but he must demonstrate to the claims examiner that the unemployment is involuntary. A worker may be involuntarily unemployed because he quit or was fired because he quit due to an ongoing conflict with a coworker or boss that could not be resolved, he quit because his work conditions were not safe or intolerable, or he was fired for poor job performance without warning.

Even if you think you may not be eligible, file anyway. According to NJ unemployment compensation law, if an employer does not respond to requests for information the Department of Labor is authorized to make a determination for benefits based on available information. That means that if you quit your job because of a conflict with a coworker and your employer fails to return information requests from the Department of Labor about the reason for your quit that the DOL will use information you provide to made a determination.

A more detailed explanation is given in a claimant manual published by the New Jersey Department of Labor and Workforce Development. It can be found in the lwd.dol.state.nj.us


After this Apply for benefits. To file a claim you will need your social security number, the name, address, and telephone number of your four most recent employers, the dates of your first and last day of employment, and the reason for the separation from employment. Some applicants may also need an alien registration number (for non-U.S. citizens), recall date, or union information.

Applications can be filed online at http://njsuccess.dol.state.nj.us/html/uimain.html or by telephone Monday through Friday from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Applicants in Northeast New Jersey who file by telephone should call the Union City Reemployment Call Center at (201) 601-4100. Applicants in Northwest and Central New Jersey should call the Freehold Reemployment Call Center at 732-761-2020. Applicants in South Jersey should call the Cumberland Reemployment Call Center at 856-507-2340.