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

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Washington program

Unemployment when hours are cut

A partial claim can pay when hours are reduced. Not pay for full-time caregiving: each week you must be able and available for suitable work.

What it is

A partial claim can pay when hours are reduced. Not pay for full-time caregiving: each week you must be able and available for suitable work.

Unemployment is money for people who lost work and can take a new job. If you are laid off or your employer cuts your hours, you can usually claim. If you quit to care for your child, Washington can still pay, as long as you explained the problem to your employer and tried reasonable ways to keep the job. Each week you claim you still have to be able to take a job, which is hard during intensive treatment, and a week paid by Paid Leave cannot also be paid by unemployment.

Eligibility rules
  • Wages in the base year, and weekly ability and availability for suitable work.
  • Quitting for a family member's illness can count in Washington. ESD expects you to have told your employer and tried reasonable ways to keep the job, unless that would have been pointless. A written request is evidence, not a guarantee.
  • Up to 26 weekly amounts, capped at a third of base-year wages. ESD decides each week claimed.
What you get
  • A weekly benefit, reduced by earnings, while hours stay cut.
  • A route to a full claim if the job ends, with your leave requests and the employer’s responses as evidence.
What it is not
  • This is not pay for staying home to give full-time care.
  • The partial-claim deduction is 75% of gross weekly earnings above $5, rounded down. Example: a $500 weekly benefit with $205 of earnings pays $350.
If you decide to apply
  1. Apply at esd.wa.gov and report hours, earnings and any leave payments accurately each week.
  2. Keep leave requests, employer responses and the reason employment changed.
  3. Before any resignation, ask the employer in writing about leave or a schedule change and keep the answer.

esd.wa.gov · Official page ↗

After you apply
  • Report work, earnings and Paid Leave payments each week. A week paid by Paid Leave cannot also be paid by unemployment.
Good to know

Paid Leave usually fits bedside care better than unemployment. Only one of them can pay for any given week.

Other details
  • A medical reason for leaving does not guarantee approval.
Official sources
Ask your social worker

“If my work changes because of my child's treatment, would unemployment pay me, or would Paid Leave fit better? Does this fit us, and can you help me compare them and think about what to say to my employer?”

Why I’m asking: We need an income option that fits how much a parent can actually work.

More background and detailed requirements

How this could help

Unemployment is not general pay for staying home to provide full-time care. If caregiving makes you unavailable for work, that can prevent eligibility even when the reason for leaving a job is understandable.

Before resigning, ask about leave, a different schedule or another way to keep the job, and keep the response. Washington can consider whether reasonable alternatives were tried when deciding if a family-illness resignation had good cause.

What to know before you apply

  • The Employment Security Department decides eligibility based on the separation and each week claimed.
  • You must accurately report availability, work, earnings and other leave payments.
  • A medical reason for leaving does not guarantee approval. Compare paid family leave and job-protected leave first.

Your next steps

  1. Ask your employer in writing about leave or a schedule adjustment before deciding to resign.
  2. Contact ESD about how your specific situation affects eligibility and preserve your correspondence.

wages in the base year; weekly ability and availability for suitable work

a quit because of a family member's illness or disability can be good cause, with employment-preservation efforts expected first

up to 26 weekly amounts, capped at a third of base-year wages

Additional program information and published rules

Who does what

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

You

Ask for leave in writing before resigning and keep every reply.

Your social worker

The employer answers the agency's questions about how the job ended.

The care team

The team can write a letter saying your child needs a parent present.

Who decides
The Employment Security Department, on what you did before leaving.
Ask HR
“Before I decide whether to leave work, could you help me compare leave options and understand what unemployment would require?”

How to apply

First step: Ask your employer in writing about leave or a schedule adjustment before deciding to resign.

  1. Before resigning, ask for leave or a schedule change in writing and keep the reply.
  2. Ask whether the employer will treat it as a furlough or a layoff instead.
  3. If the job has ended, file the claim in the same week.

Official application / program page ↗

Where it starts: File a claim online with the Employment Security Department. Keep the written leave request you made before leaving.

What to gather

  • Your written leave request and the reply
  • Pay records for the last eighteen months
  • A letter from the team about your child's care

How long: Claims are weekly once the first decision is made.

What a yes looks like

A weekly benefit amount and a run of payable weeks.

What a no looks like, and the next move

If they say the quit was voluntary, appeal and send the written leave request you made before leaving.

Watch out

  • Ask for leave in writing before resigning; that request is what the good-cause test looks for.
  • Every week you claim, you have to be able and available to work.
  • A furlough or an employer-initiated separation is a cleaner route than a resignation.

Dates that change this

2026-09-10: The 2026 weekly minimum and maximum could not be read from a live state page, so no dollar figure is printed. The amounts are reset each June 30 for the following year's new claims.

2026-09-10: The statute speaks of asking for reemployment when you are able, while the agency rule says no request after the separation is needed. Do what the statute says and keep the paperwork.

The numbers and the rules

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

What it is worth

Weekly pay for up to 26 weekly amounts, or a third of your base-year wages if that is less, when a quit for a family member's illness is accepted as good cause.

  • $26/year — Most weekly amounts payable in a benefit year

Legal protection: A quit that was necessary because of a family member's illness can be good cause · Part-time earnings do not always end the claim

What it costs the family: Nothing.

The eligibility facts, as published

Employment
wages in the base year; weekly ability and availability for suitable work
Quit rule
a quit because of a family member's illness or disability can be good cause, with employment-preservation efforts expected first
Duration
up to 26 weekly amounts, capped at a third of base-year wages
Residency
Washington employment

Decisions this site cannot make: Separation determination · Weekly ability and availability checks

Expect friction on: Proving the leave request was made before the resignation

The trap: Every week you claim, you also have to be able to work and available for work. A parent who is at the hospital around the clock and not available for any job should not be counted on for this money. Ask for leave in writing before you resign: that written request is what the good-cause test looks for.

Where I read this

← Back to your options