First time teachers at Illinois often found themselves asking this question - are teachers eligible for unemployment? The best answer for this question is no.
The only way to qualify for academic personnel to qualify for unemployment insurance benefits is that they have insufficient non-academic wages between and within an academic term.
According to the Illinois Unemployment Benefits Handbook: A claim is based on wages that were earned during the course or tenure of your stay in an institution as a teacher, administrator or a researcher or even if one is on a vacation or a holiday recess as long as they have the reasonable assurance of returning back to work the following term.
As stated above, educational personnel might qualify if they have insufficient non-academic wages within an academic term.
A claim will be disqualified if the personnel are a bus driver, cook/cafeteria worker, crossing guard or any other non academic personnel.
Academic personnel may be disqualified if he/she is on a paid sabbatical leave.
Tips on Claiming or Getting Unemployment Benefits Unemployment benefits are one way for teachers to protect themselves financially.
In the course of being unemployed, preparation and careful planning are the best ways to stay protected.
Most schools and institutions offer unemployment benefits for their academic personnel in case they lose their jobs within a certain time period.
Teachers on the hunt for possible teaching jobs should always ask their future employers if they offer unemployment benefits for their teaching personnel.
If a teacher has different job offerings, he/she should consider the ones offering unemployment benefits; this does not only guarantee a job protection, it also guarantees you further financial protection.
Teachers Unions are a great source when looking for unemployment insurance.
There are a lot of said unions which offer remarkable benefits, protection and rewards to its members; one of which is the unemployment insurance.
There are so many things that a union can do to protect its members.
A lawyer will be provided by the union before a teacher loses his/her job, free of charge; the lawyer will go to the place of employment and remove all possibilities of losing the job.
The lawyer will also represent their clients in meetings, interviews and discussions involving the agenda of letting the said teacher go.
Most of the time, lawyers often succeed in saving a teacher's job.
While there are still a lot of things to do in order to get unemployment benefits from other sources, it's often very tricky and hard to find.
Through dedicated research and a little bit of networking, it's possible for a teacher to qualify and claim an unemployment insurance or benefit.