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News Release

Minimum And Maximum Weekly Benefit Amounts To Increase For New Unemployment Insurance And Paid Leave Oregon Claims (Photo) -06/03/25

For Immediate Release

June 3, 2025



Minimum and Maximum Weekly Benefit Amounts to Increase for New Unemployment Insurance and Paid Leave Oregon Claims 
 

June 3, 2025 (Salem, OR) — The Oregon Employment Department announced today the annual adjustment to the minimum and maximum weekly benefit amounts (WBAs) for both regular Unemployment Insurance and Paid Leave Oregon claims.  
 

Each year, under Oregon law (ORS 657.150(4) and ORS 657B.050), the Employment Department recalculates these benefit amounts based on the state average weekly wage, which reflects the average wages of all employees across Oregon. The 2025 state average weekly wage is $1,363.80, up 4.3 percent from $1,307.17 in 2024.  

 
The minimum and maximum WBAs change from: 

 

Program 

Minimum WBA 

Maximum WBA 

Unemployment Insurance 

$196 → $204 per week 

$836 → $872 per week 

Paid Leave Oregon 

$65.36 → $68.19 per week 

$1,568.60 → $1,636.56 per week 


The 2025 minimum and maximum WBAs will affect: 

  • New Unemployment Insurance claims filed on or after June 29, 2025; and 

  • Paid Leave Oregon claims with benefit years that begin on or after July 6, 2025

Unemployment Insurance 

  • For Unemployment Insurance, the minimum WBA is 15% and the maximum is 64% of the state average weekly wage, rounded down to the nearest dollar.  

  • A claimant’s weekly benefit amount is usually 1.25% of what they earned during their “base period,” which is roughly the first 12 of the 15 months before the date they filed their claim. 

  • New claims filed before June 29, 2025, will be subject to the 2024 minimum and maximum WBAs for the duration of the claim. 

Paid Leave Oregon 

  • For Paid Leave Oregon, weekly benefit amounts are based on a formula that compares a worker’s average weekly wage to the state average weekly wage. If a worker earns 65% or less of the state average, they receive benefits equal to 100% of their wages. Those earning more than 65% receive a portion of their wages. 

  • Claimants whose Paid Leave Oregon benefit year begins before July 6, 2025, will be subject to the 2024 minimum and maximum WBAs for the duration of their benefit year.  

Paid Leave Oregon claimants can estimate their weekly benefit using the Paid Leave benefits calculator. More information on Unemployment Insurance benefits is available here


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The Oregon Employment Department (OED) is an equal opportunity agency. OED provides free help so you can use our services. Some examples are sign language and spoken-language interpreters, written materials in other languages, large print, audio, and other formats. To get help, please call 503-947-1444. TTY users call 711. You can also send an email to communications@employ.oregon.gov. 
 

El Departamento de Empleo de Oregon (OED) es una agencia de igualdad de oportunidades. El OED proporciona ayuda gratuita para que usted pueda utilizar nuestros servicios. Algunos ejemplos son intérpretes de lengua de señas e idiomas hablados, materiales escritos en otros idiomas, letra grande, audio y otros formatos. Para obtener ayuda, por favor llame al 503-947-1444. Usuarios de TTY pueden llamar al 711. También puede enviar un correo electrónico a communications@employ.oregon.gov. 

 

U.S. Department Of Labor Terminates Four Federal Unemployment Insurance Grants In Oregon (Photo) -06/02/25

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 

June 2, 2025 

Contact: 

 

U.S. Department of Labor terminates four federal Unemployment Insurance grants in Oregon 

June 2, 2025 (Salem, OR) — The U.S. Department of Labor (USDOL) has terminated four federal Unemployment Insurance grants to the Oregon Employment Department.  

OED was notified of the immediate termination of the following grants on May 22, purportedly because each “no longer effectuates the Department of Labor’s priorities for grant funding.”  

  • Unemployment Insurance (UI) Navigator Grant – A $3 million grant awarded in 2022 that funded partnerships with three community-based organizations to help workers from historically underserved communities learn about, apply for, and, if eligible, receive UI benefits. This grant was set to expire on June 14, 2025. 

  • Equitable Access to Unemployment Insurance (EAUI) Grant – A $4.5 million grant in 2022 aimed at removing barriers and improving access to UI benefits for historically underserved communities through outreach, improved tools, and by developing new resources. This grant was set to expire on June 30, 2025. 

  • Unemployment Insurance Integrity Grant – A $1.7 million grant awarded in 2023 to boost overpayment recovery by funding eight limited duration positions in the Contributions & Recovery Division.  

  • Unemployment Insurance Tiger Team Grant – This $3 million grant funded many projects, most of which are already completed. However, approximately $370,000 was awarded in 2023 to hire outside experts to help ensure OED’s most commonly used letters were easy to understand. Work on this portion of the grant had not started at the time of termination.  

OED is actively assessing the impact of these federal termination notices, in close partnership with Governor Kotek and legal counsel. 

Because the Equitable Access and Navigator grants were staffed through job rotations, OED does not anticipate that terminating the grants a few weeks early will significantly impact customers.  

Terminating the Integrity Grant has resulted in the elimination of seven limited duration positions in Contributions & Recovery, which will hamper OED’s efforts to recover money from customers who were not eligible for all of the benefits they received.  

“We are extremely proud of the work we have already completed as a result of these grants, including our efforts to make sure all Oregonians have access to unemployment insurance benefits” said OED Director David Gerstenfeld. “We are equally disappointed that we will have fewer resources to support our ongoing work in overpayment recovery and improving the customer experience, which will always be high priorities for OED.”  

 

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The Oregon Employment Department (OED) is an equal opportunity agency. OED provides free help so you can use our services. Some examples are sign language and spoken-language interpreters, written materials in other languages, large print, audio, and other formats. To get help, please call 503-947-1444. TTY users call 711. You can also send an email to communications@employ.oregon.gov

El Departamento de Empleo de Oregon (OED) es una agencia de igualdad de oportunidades. El OED proporciona ayuda gratuita para que usted pueda utilizar nuestros servicios. Algunos ejemplos son intérpretes de lengua de señas e idiomas hablados, materiales escritos en otros idiomas, letra grande, audio y otros formatos. Para obtener ayuda, por favor llame al 503-947-1444. Usuarios de TTY pueden llamar al 711. También puede enviar un correo electrónico a communications@employ.oregon.gov

Press Release: Oregon’s Unemployment Rate Was 4.7% In April (Photo) -05/14/25

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
May 14, 2025

CONTACT INFORMATION:
Gail Krumenauer, State Employment Economist

(971) 301-3771

Video and Audio available at 10 a.m. PT

David Cooke, Economist (971) 375-5288

Oregon’s Unemployment Rate Was 4.7% in April

Oregon’s unemployment rate was 4.7% in April and 4.6% in March, after rising gradually over the past year from 4.1% in April 2024. Oregon’s 4.7% unemployment rate was 1.1 percentage points higher than the recent low of 3.6% during spring 2023. The U.S. unemployment rate was 4.2% in both March and April.

In April, Oregon’s seasonally adjusted nonfarm payroll employment rose by 1,200 jobs, following a revised gain of 6,200 jobs in March. April’s gains were largest in leisure and hospitality (+3,300 jobs) and professional and business services (+900). Declines were largest in transportation, warehousing, and utilities (-1,300 jobs) and other services          (-600). None of the other major industries had a change of more than 400 jobs.

Leisure and hospitality had a larger-than-expected increase in seasonal hiring in April, adding 3,300 jobs. The April jobs total of 212,700 was 5,600 jobs, or 2.7%, above its average during the prior two years. Its component industry arts, entertainment, and recreation added 500 jobs in April, to reach a record high of 30,200. During the past two years it has expanded consistently. Meanwhile, the other component industry—accommodation and food services—is estimated to have grown rapidly this year, adding 2,800 jobs in April and 5,000 jobs so far this year, following slight declines over the prior two years.

Construction employment slipped by 200 jobs in April to a total of 114,600 jobs, continuing a gradual downward trend. Since reaching a peak of 119,000 jobs in June 2023 construction has shed 4,400 jobs, or -3.7%.

Transportation, warehousing, and utilities cut 1,300 jobs in April, following a gradual gain of nearly the same amount during the prior 12 months. Most of the April loss occurred in couriers and messengers which cut 800 jobs in April and shed 1,200 jobs since April 2024.

Next Press Releases

The Oregon Employment Department plans to release the April county and metropolitan area unemployment rates on Tuesday, May 20, and the next statewide unemployment rate and employment survey data for May on Wednesday, June 18.

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