Denied unemployment benefit because of lump sum after separation

[Vinny94]

Jurisdiction

Florida

In June 2024 I was laid off by a large telecommunications company in Florida and was given termination pay as a lump sum after separation. I applied for unemployment in July and now I just received notice that I was denied because "the claimant is receiving disqualifying income". I did some searching online and came across mixed answers , some saying that I should be denied and some saying it should not affect unemployment benefits because it was a lump sum received before applying for benefits. Just looking for other opinions.

Thank you

 

[zddoodah]

I was laid off by a large telecommunications company

What was your job title? How much were you earning?

and was given termination pay as a lump sum after separation.

How much?

Just looking for other opinions.

Opinions of anonymous strangers on the internet aren't going to be of any value. What you need is information about the applicable law as it applies to your situation. Providing answers to my questions above may help facilitate that.

 

[Vinny94]

What was your job title? How much were you earning?




How much?




Opinions of anonymous strangers on the internet aren't going to be of any value. What you need is information about the applicable law as it applies to your situation. Providing answers to my questions above may help facilitate that.

Analyst making around 60K yr. Termination pay after separation was 27K lump sum.

 

[adjusterjack]

You haven't been denied benefits, only delayed.

Florida statute 443.101 Disqualification for benefits.
(3) For any week with respect to which he or she is receiving or has received remuneration in the form of:
(b) Severance pay. The number of weeks that an individual's severance pay disqualifies the individual is equal to the amount of the severance pay divided by that individual's average weekly wage received from the employer that paid the severance pay, rounded down to the nearest whole number, beginning with the week the individual is separated from employment.

Statutes & Constitution :View Statutes : Online Sunshine

$60k per year = $1154 per week.

$27k divided by $1154 = 23.4 weeks.

Looks like you will have to wait 23 weeks to collect unemployment benefits.

Hopefully enough time to find another job.

 

[Vinny94]

You haven't been denied benefits, only delayed.



$60k per year = $1154 per week.

$27k divided by $1154 = 23.4 weeks.

Looks like you will have to wait 23 weeks to collect unemployment benefits.

Hopefully enough time to find another job.

Thanks.
I wish they would of let me know right after I initially applied instead of having to input all those weeks of job searches. I listed the lump sum, didn't try to hide it.
Is there a difference between termination pay and severance pay when it comes to unemployment benefits ?

 

[adjusterjack]

I wish they would of let me know right after I initially applied instead of having to input all those weeks of job searches.

Look at it this way. If those job searched had yielded a nice job you would have been $27K ahead of the game.

Is there a difference between termination pay and severance pay when it comes to unemployment benefits

Nope. Income is income. You pay income tax on the severance.

Oh, which reminds me, check you withholding to make sure you have enough withheld to cover income taxes. If you are going to have under-withholding because of the severance you may have to file and pay estimated tax for the 4th quarter. You can get information about that from the IRS website.