Working temporary, low payer jobs caused me to lose all benefits, end up in forfeiture and owing the state thousands.

by Idiot

(Wisconsin)

Hi. I am a single mom of three who lost her job as a licenced Radiologic Technologist in Wisconsin in Oct 2012. While I was appealing my initial unemployment denial, I took a seasonal, very part time waitressing job from a friend who wanted to help me get through the Holidays. It was a temporary job. I did not report the $300 I earned in the four weeks I was there, nor did I report when I started and stopped working. Since I was filing weekly claims but not recieving any payments while I was awaiting my court date, I didn’t bother to research it, and honestly, past the first two weeks, just went online on my Iphone and clicked the two yes’s and 6 no’s. I wasn’t even reading the questions.

Being an idiot, I assumed that since it was a temporary job and the income wasn’t even $30 a day, three days a week, that it would not affect my benefits (if I was going to get them.) I was dead wrong.

Failure to read the questions caused me to be audited, placed in forfeiture, where for the next 6 years, if I make a UE claim, $10,000 will have to be paid back to UE as a penalty!!! Meaning, if I lose a job again in 6 years, I will get nothing. I will literally be homeless.

They assessed the 4 weeks I received income, decided I owed the entire week’s payments of $350, times 4 weeks, then times 4 for a penalty, and assessed an additional 15%. So its in the ballpark of around $6000. So, essentially, because I was an idiot, the $300 I made to buy christmas presents for my kids now will cost me, essentially, $16,000. READ, READ, READ everthing and if you don’t understand it, go into a UE office in person and get help. If you keep trying to call the phone number to speak to an agent, and get sick of being told to call back a million times because they have too many people on hold and can’t take your call, go into an UE office and wait to be seen. Ask every question, even if you think you know the answer.