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State offices are closed Friday, July 3, 2009, for Independence Day. You must file your weekly claim for the week ending 06/27/09 by 5 p.m. Thursday, 07/02/09.
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Training benefits

Training Benefits are additional unemployment benefits that can pay up to 52 times your unemployment weekly benefit amount, minus any regular unemployment benefits paid to you.

For example:

  • If you are paid 26 weeks of regular benefits you can be paid 26 weeks of training benefits.
  • If you are paid 20 weeks of regular benefits you can be paid 32 weeks of training benefits.
Training benefits are payable after your regular and emergency unemployment compensation benefits (EUC) run out - though you must apply for them early in your claim (see timeframes below). Training benefits are payable until they run out or your approved training ends – whichever comes first.

If you are approved for training benefits, you are not required to look for work as long as you are enrolled and making satisfactory progress in your training program.

Training benefits do not pay for books, tuition, or school-related fees – they are simply extra weeks of unemployment benefits to provide you additional income during the time you are in training.

There are certain deadlines for submitting your Training Benefit Application and enrolling in training.  These deadlines start from the date you get the Unemployment Claims Kit in the mail.  This Kit tells you about training benefits and is mailed to you when you open your unemployment claim.

For unemployment claims effective before April 5, 2009:

  • You have 60 calendar days to turn in a Training Benefits Application.
  • You have 90 calendar days to enroll in training, or as soon as possible if we determine the training is not available within 90 days.
  • We will deny training benefits if you do not meet these deadlines.
For unemployment claims effective April 5, 2009, or later:

  • You have 90 calendar days to turn in a Training Benefits Application.
  • You have 120 calendar days to enroll in training, or as soon as possible if we determine the training is not available within 120 days.
  • We will deny training benefits if you do not meet these deadlines, unless you show good cause.
If you return to work after opening your unemployment claim and are laid off again, the deadlines start over beginning with the date you reopen your unemployment claim.

To be potentially eligible for training benefits, you must:

  • Have a current unemployment claim (applied for within the past 12 months);
  • Submit a Training Benefits Application within 60 or 90 days as explained above (plus 5 days mailing) of filing your new claim or reopening a claim after returning to work and then becoming unemployed;
  • Be eligible for or have exhausted your regular unemployment benefits;
  • Have a long-term work history in a declining occupation or using a particular skill; and
  • Be unlikely to return to work because your occupation or skills are no longer in demand in your local labor market, as determined by your local Workforce Development Council.
  • Not have received training benefits within the past five years.
Note: If your unemployment claim starts April 5, 2009, or later, the “long-term work history” requirement above does not apply.

An approved training program is a course of education which:

  • Is full time, as determined by the school or training facility;
    • If your unemployment claim starts April 5, 2009, or later and you have a disability that prevents full-time training we may be able to approve training benefits for part-time training.
  • Is at a school or training facility, and in a training program on the Eligible Training Provider List approved by the Workforce Training and Education Coordinating Board;
  • Provides you with skills that will allow you to get a job in an occupation which is in high demand in your labor market, as determined by your local Workforce Development Council; and
  • Is not primarily intended to meet the requirements of a bachelor or higher degree.


To apply for training benefits:

Call the TeleCenter at 800-318-6022 to ask for a Training Benefits Application Packet, contact your nearest WorkSource Office, or download and print a packet online.

Mail your completed application to:

King County TeleCenter
Training Benefits Unit
PO Box 47076
Seattle, WA 98146-7076

You can also drop off your completed application at the nearest WorkSource office.

We will send you a written decision to tell you if you are eligible.  If you fail to meet any of the training benefits eligibility requirements we will deny your request for training benefits. Please refer to the appeals section to learn how to appeal a written denial of benefits.

We require you to send in progress reports while in your training to show you are meeting the requirements.  We will deny your benefits if you fail to provide the progress report or are not meeting the requirements.

If you have been approved for training benefits and need to make any modification to your approved training plan, you must complete the Request to Modify Training Plan form.