Written by a parent, not a doctor. Nothing here is medical advice.

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Missouri program

Income after a job loss (unemployment)

Temporary weekly payments when a job ends under qualifying circumstances and you can take full-time work.

What it is

Temporary weekly payments when a job ends under qualifying circumstances and you can take full-time work.

Each week you claim you also have to be able to take a full-time job, which is hard while your child needs you at home.

Eligibility rules
  • The job has to end through no fault of yours. A quit counts only if the reason was caused by the job or the employer.
  • You must be able and available for full-time work each week.
  • Each week you usually have to show three job contacts, unless DES excuses you. Hours your employer cut and hours you cut yourself are looked at differently.
What you get
  • Up to $320 weekly for at most 20 weeks in a benefit year.
  • Partial payments can be available when hours fall and the other requirements are met.
What the help includes
  • The weekly calculation is 4% of the average of the two highest base-period quarters, capped at $320.
  • For partial benefits, the greater of $20 or 20% of the weekly benefit is disregarded before earnings reduce payment.
  • Weekly earnings above the larger of $20 or 20% of the weekly benefit reduce the payment, rounded down to whole dollars. The $320 and 20-week maxima are ceilings, not a guaranteed award.
If you decide to apply
  1. Ask the Division of Employment Security about a claim through its unemployed-worker pages.
  2. Have your work history and the reason hours or employment ended ready. Discuss leave options with your benefits office as well.

Missouri Division of Employment Security · Official page ↗

After you apply
  • From August 28, 2026, each weekly claim is due within 14 days of the end of that week, or 28 days with a good reason. DES can explain when a claim starts and whether earlier weeks can be paid.
Good to know

This mainly helps a parent whose employer ends or cuts the job. Quitting to care for your child usually fails on two counts: the reason, and not being free to take a job.

Other details
  • Missouri has no state paid family leave program. The paid-sick-leave law was repealed August 28, 2025. Federal FMLA and employer policies have separate eligibility rules.
Official sources
Ask your social worker

“If my work changes because of my child's treatment, would unemployment pay me, or does quitting rule it out? Does this fit us, and can you help me look at leave first?”

Why I’m asking: I want to understand what income could continue before making a work decision.

More background and detailed requirements
Additional program information and published rules

Who does what

The three parts, side by side. The agency decides; nobody on this page does.

You

Put the leave request in writing before you resign, and keep what HR says.

Your social worker

The hospital social worker can help word the request.

The care team

A clinician's letter describing the care your child needs supports a leave request.

Who decides
Your employer decides leave; the Division of Employment Security decides a claim
Ask HR
“My child is in cancer treatment. Before I make any decision about my job, I am asking in writing for unpaid leave, and asking whether I am covered by the federal leave law.”

How to apply

First step: Write to HR this week asking for unpaid leave, before making any decision about the job.

  1. Ask HR for unpaid leave in writing before resigning, and keep the answer.
  2. If the employer has 50 or more people and you have been there a year, ask about federal leave by name.
  3. If a job has already ended, file the claim the same week.

Official application / program page ↗

Where it starts: File a claim with the Division of Employment Security. Before that, ask the employer for unpaid leave in writing.

What to gather

The diagnosis letter, the child’s insurance card, and the last two pay stubs cover most applications. The official page lists the rest.

How long: The department says payments start within 22 days of an initial claim when there is nothing to investigate.

What a yes looks like

Unpaid leave agreed in writing, with the health plan continuing.

What a no looks like, and the next move

If leave is refused and the job ends anyway, file the claim and say exactly why the job ended.

Watch out

  • Missouri repealed its paid-sick-leave law in August 2025 and blocks local rules that go further.
  • A caregiving quit is not good cause, and a caregiver who cannot work full time also fails the availability test.
  • The $320 cap has no annual increase written into the statute.

Dates that change this

2025-08-28: Missouri's paid-sick-leave law was repealed on August 28, 2025, and local rules that would go further are preempted. There is no state leave entitlement to fall back on.

The numbers and the rules

The arcane layer, kept on purpose. Checked September 11, 2026.

What it is worth

At most $320 a week for at most 20 weeks, and only when the job ended through no fault of yours.

  • $320/week — Maximum weekly benefit amount
  • $20 — Maximum weeks in a benefit year
  • $4 — Share of the average of the two highest base-period quarters

Legal protection: A negative fact worth knowing: a caregiving quit is not treated as good cause, so ask for leave first

What it costs the family: None.

The eligibility facts, as published

Condition
the job ended through no fault of yours, or you quit with good cause attributable to the work or the employer
Availability
you must be able and available for full-time work each week
Amount
4 percent of the average of your two highest base-period quarters, capped at $320 a week
Duration
20 weeks maximum in a benefit year
Residency
Missouri

The trap: Ask for unpaid leave before resigning. Missouri repealed its paid-sick-leave law on August 28, 2025 and preempts local rules that would go further, so there is no state entitlement to fall back on; if the employer has 50 or more people and you have been there a year, the federal law is what holds the job. If a job ends through no fault of yours, the weekly payment is 4 percent of the average of your two highest quarters, capped at $320, for at most 20 weeks.

Where I read this

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