What are my unemployment benefits? Find out now!

Questioner

I became unemployed last year, I am entitled to 16 months (16 years of work) of unemployment benefits. Now I am offered a contract for 1 year with a higher salary than my current unemployment benefits (70% of my last salary + 5% above-statutory benefit via ex-employer, because I was a civil servant). If my contract is not extended after 1 year, I will go back on unemployment benefits. How much do I get and for how long? 70% of my last salary with a much shorter duration or will I get my current unemployment benefit/rights back (revived right) with a much more favorable duration?

Lawyer

If you become unemployed again within 26 weeks, your unemployment benefit will revive. This means that your benefit will continue, in your case up to and including 16 months. If you do not meet this requirement, the duration of your benefit will be recalculated. In principle, you are entitled to 3 months. This can be extended with your employment history if you have worked for 4 years in the five years prior to your dismissal (and have received at least 52 days' wages per year). If your salary is lower due to accepting a lower paying job, you can get a daily wage guarantee. For further explanation and conditions, I would like to refer you to the following website: http://www.rijksoverheid.nl/onderwerpen/werkeloos-en-ww/na-de-ww-weer-aan-de-slag I can't give you a definitive answer to your question now, because the answer depends on all the circumstances. Hopefully I have helped you enough with this.

Questioner

but I find that very demotivating. I think that people would rather wait out their benefits than get to work as soon as possible, since they would lose their well-earned unemployment benefits (with a 6 month + contract). How do you see it?

Lawyer

That is not entirely correct. As long as you have not been unemployed for more than one year and have received at least 52 days of wages in the other four years, your total employment history will be reviewed again. Suppose you have been unemployed for exactly one year. You return to work for one year and then end up back home, then you have received at least 52 days of wages in the previous five years. Your entire employment history will then be examined and it may well be the case that you are entitled to 16 months of unemployment benefit again (probably one month more because time has passed). So you are not 'worse off'. In addition, you are required to accept work in order to get out of the WW benefit. If the UWV discovers that the benefit is being abused, it can be stopped completely. The basic principle of all benefits is that working is more beneficial for everyone. And you probably feel better about being at work. Hopefully I have helped you sufficiently with this.