Unemployment Benefit Increase, July 8

The amount paid to people filing for unemployment insurance benefits has increased slightly. The maximum weekly benefit amount an individual can receive will increase to $549, while the minimum amount will be $128.  The change affects new unemployment insurance claims effective on or after June 29, 2014. Those with existing unemployment claims will continue to receive the same weekly amount.  Under Oregon law, each year the Employment Department recalculates the maximum and minimum amounts paid weekly to those filing for unemployment benefits. The amounts are set as percentages of the average weekly wage earned by Oregonians. The minimum unemployment figure is 15% of average weekly wage, and the maximum amount is 64%. Both dollar amounts are rounded down to the nearest dollar as required by law.  The new maximum and minimum payments represent a 2 and 1.6 percent increase respectively from benefits paid over the past year. Over the past 12 months the maximum payment has been $538, while the minimum was $126.