Filing for Unemployment in Montana

In today's economy, it is not uncommon for a resident of Montana to find themselves out of work and in need of unemployment benefits for the first time in their lives. Filing for unemployment in Montana is much easier than you may expect. The Montana Unemployment Insurance web site offers a great deal of resources to answer your initial questions.

You may begin the process over the phone or on the internet. Regardless of which you choose, you will be asked you name, mailing address, demographic data (age, gender, etc.), social security number, and whether you are a U.S. citizen, totally unemployed, and able to work. You will also be required to disclose your employers over the last eighteen months, the dates you worked for those employers, and why you no longer work for them. Montana law allows for the Department of Labor & Industry to require written verification of any of these things. Once you submit this information, the claim will be effective on Sunday of the week that you file, unless you can demonstrate to the department a good reason why you were delayed in filing your claim.

Now that you have filed your claim, the Department will obtain your wages from each of your former employers over the last 5 quarters. To qualify for benefits, your total earnings in the first 4 of the most recent 5 quarters must be at least 1 ½ of the total amount of the highest quarter during the same 4 quarter period. In other words, you may not be eligible if you made most, or all, of your money in 1 particular quarter. This test is called your Monetary Determination. You will receive a document disclosing the information used to make your Monetary Determination; be sure to check it for mistakes.

If it is determined that you are eligible so far, the department will next look to the reason you are not working. Basically, if you were laid off or have reduced hours due to lack of work, you will be eligible. Also, if you were fired for something other than misconduct or you were hurt on the job, you will be eligible. If you left work on your own accord, or if you were fired for misconduct, you will not be eligible for benefits. Examples of misconduct would be stealing, lying, carelessness, missing work often, or destroying company property.

At this point, if you have met these criteria, you will be awarded benefits. To roughly estimate your weekly benefit, add up how much you made in the first 4 of the last 5 quarters and multiply it by .01. For example, if you made $12,000 in those 4 quarters, your weekly benefit would be $12,000 multiplied by .01, or $120 per week. This number will be subjected to a minimum and a maximum based on the average weekly wages for an employee of the employer you used to work for. This is a calculation you will not be able to do on your own since it involves dollar amounts that will come from your employer.

Besides your weekly cash benefit, you will also have access to the Montana Employment Services and you may be eligible for the Workforce Service Center when you near the end of your benefits period. These services are designed to help you learn new skills and find employment using them.

Once you receive your first check, you can choose to request continuation of your benefits on a weekly or bi-weekly basis. It really does not matter which you choose, but the Department recommends that you choose one and stick with it. Each time you make a request via the phone or internet, you must disclose whether you have worked since the last time you requested continuation and whether you are able and willing to work. Keep in mind that you are not required to take a job in a much different field than you were in before or work for much less pay. For example, if you were an engineer making $750 per week when you were laid off, you will not be required to take a $7 per hour job raking leaves to avoid being ineligible for benefits.

There is an appeals process if you feel as though you were improperly denied benefits. The appeals process can become complicated and it is recommended that you consult an attorney to assist you. Many times an attorney will only charge you a fee if you are able to overturn the determination and are awarded benefits.

Your benefits will end with one of two things happen. First, if you find employment and stop making your weekly or bi-weekly request for continuation, your benefits will cease. Also, you may exhaust the total amount of available benefits or the total time benefits are available. Due to the state of the economy, these numbers are constantly changing. Check the Department's web site for the latest maximums.