Collecting unemployment while officiating

[MichOfficial]

Greetings to all! I am a new official and I have a question about collecting unemployment, which is also a new experience for me. I am a seasonal worker, so I will be drawing unemployment over the winter. I am also officiating volleyball here in Michigan. There will be a few weeks in January and February when I will be earning more money than my unemployment benefit, but to my understanding, I can still collect my full unemployment check even though I will be receiving money from officiating. Is this correct? I've heard a few reasons as to why I can still collect the full check:

1). The money earned from officiating is outsourcing for schools, and is not reported as wages earned... and they do not take out unemployment or taxes from the officiating check.

2). The money earned from officiating is not the same as wages earned from a traditional employer, so it does not fit into the same category as earnings from a "traditional" job.

If you can provide any answers, I will certainly appreciate it! The last thing I want to do is get in trouble with the government!

[Mark Dexter]

I would highly recommend contacting a lawyer to see what the laws are in your state.

[mick]

Originally Posted by MichOfficial

I've heard a few reasons as to why I can still collect the full check:

1). The money earned from officiating is outsourcing for schools, and is not reported as wages earned... and they do not take out unemployment or taxes from the officiating check.

2). The money earned from officiating is not the same as wages earned from a traditional employer, so it does not fit into the same category as earnings from a "traditional" job.

If you can provide any answers, I will certainly appreciate it! The last thing I want to do is get in trouble with the government!

If you were a laid off construction worker, and you took a "side job" as a subcontractor, and you got paid, would you report those wages, eventhough your seasonal employer was not writing the check ?

[bluezebra]

Some years ago, I was out of work, but still did some officiating. I reported the money I made, and it cut my unemployment check slightly. There was a pro-rated formula they used. This was in California.

Bob

[TheSlav]

I was almost in the same boat once, Florida I believe asks if you received "any" income, to avoid the classification issue. They should have this type of question answered when you file or in the FAQ page of your states U/E Insurance Claims website. You know it's come up for them many times in the past.

However, for the most part Unemployment Claims appear to be on the honor system. Which is also what the Federal tax system is based on. However, like Ronald Reagan used to say, they trust but verify.

The question becomes, what level of risk are you are willing to take. Or to paraphrase Clint Eastwood "Well, are you feeling lucky?"

I would take zero chances with Uncle Sammy and little or none with any of the states systems. How's it going to look if you're the one guy that gets audited?

[MichOfficial]

Thanks for the advice so far everyone. If you think of something else that applies to this thread, I would love to hear it!

[GarthB]

Originally Posted by MichOfficial

Greetings to all! I am a new official and I have a question about collecting unemployment, which is also a new experience for me. I am a seasonal worker, so I will be drawing unemployment over the winter. I am also officiating volleyball here in Michigan. There will be a few weeks in January and February when I will be earning more money than my unemployment benefit, but to my understanding, I can still collect my full unemployment check even though I will be receiving money from officiating. Is this correct? I've heard a few reasons as to why I can still collect the full check:

1). The money earned from officiating is outsourcing for schools, and is not reported as wages earned... and they do not take out unemployment or taxes from the officiating check.

2). The money earned from officiating is not the same as wages earned from a traditional employer, so it does not fit into the same category as earnings from a "traditional" job.

If you can provide any answers, I will certainly appreciate it! The last thing I want to do is get in trouble with the government!

Report all income/compensation to both the unemployment office and IRS. There will be some kind of prorated deduction from your unemployment, but that will be far less than the fines assessed if you don't report and are caught.

A local basketball official failed to report his season earnings of a little over $2000 a couple of years ago and got caught. The fines, fees, lawyer bill and amount of unemployment he had to pay back totalled over $6,000.

Honesty pays.