Unemployment benefits for workers whose hours change with the school calendar

If you are a school bus driver, crossing guard, or food service worker employed by a private company, you may be able to collect unemployment if your hours are cut due to scheduled breaks that are at least a week long.

What you need to know about holiday breaks

If you are not working over the holiday break and you are not receiving holiday pay, you may qualify for unemployment benefits.

If you already have an existing unemployment claim (for example, from summer break), you can reopen that claim. Your benefits depend on when your break starts:

• If your break starts December 19, you can request that full week of benefits.
• If your break starts December 22, you can request three days of benefits for that week.
• If you are still on break for the week of December 29 through January 2, you can request that full week of benefits.

If you don’t have an existing claim from within the last year, you will need to submit an initial application for benefits. You should request benefits for every week you are not working and not receiving holiday pay. You will not be paid for the first week of your claim. That week is the “waiting week.” 

How to reopen a claim

If you’ve submitted an application for benefits in the last 12 months, you can reopen your unemployment claim: 

1. Sign into Unemployment Services for Workers
2. From your dashboard, select "Reopen your unemployment insurance claim"
3. Follow the prompts to complete your submission. You will need to answer some specific questions about this temporary situation
   1. Be sure to answer questions about any new employment since you filed your initial claim
   2. When asked, “Do you still work for this employer?” say “Yes”
   3. When asked, “Are you on a temporary lay off?” say “Yes”
   4. Provide your expected return to work date

Log in to Unemployment Services for Workers 

Eligibility

If you’re a school bus driver, crossing guard, or other school employee whose hours have been significantly reduced because of the school calendar through no fault of your own, you can apply for unemployment insurance.

You may be eligible to apply even if:

• You work for a private company rather than directly for a school district (if that company pays unemployment insurance)
• Your hours have been reduced due to scheduled breaks that are at least a week long—for example, summer vacation, holiday recesses, winter break, or spring break

How to apply

If you do not have an existing claim, or your last claim was filed over a year ago, you will need to apply for benefits: 

1. Sign into Unemployment Services for Workers
2. From your dashboard, select "File an unemployment insurance claim"
3. Follow the prompts to complete your application. You will need to answer some specific questions about this temporary situation:
   1. If you worked the week before you apply, you will be asked if you worked fewer hours than usual. Answer this based on the number of hours you usually work. If you always work part-time, and you worked the same number of hours that week, answer “No”
   2. When asked, “Do you still work for this employer?” say “Yes”
   3. When asked, “Are you on a temporary lay off?” say “Yes”
   4. Provide your expected return to work date

Apply for unemployment benefits online 

What happens after you apply

After you submit an initial application, you can start filing a weekly claim for benefits as soon as you get a Monetary Determination notice. You must submit a weekly claim for every week you need to receive benefits.

What to expect after you apply for unemployment insurance