Unemployment Resource
Phone: (501) 907-2590
Eligibility
Claims must be filed with a State Employment Security Department office. Certain conditions must be met during each week for which benefits are payable.
To be eligible, you must be:
- Unemployed,
- Physically and mentally able to perform suitable work,
- Available for suitable work,
- Making a reasonable effort to find work,
- Free of participation or direct interest in a labor dispute, and
- Free of disqualification
In addition to the above, a waiting period of one (1) week must be served before benefits are payable to you. A week to be used as a valid waiting period must be a valid week of unemployment. A valid week of unemployment must be a week you have claimed subsequent to filing your Initial Claim, in which you did not have any earnings or had earnings of less than 140% of your Weekly Benefit Amount and met all Eligibility Requirements.
Able to work means being physically and mentally able to perform work similar to work you performed in the past or other work for which you are fitted by experience and training to perform and have a reasonable expectancy of obtaining.
Available for work means being ready to accept work at once, and there are not circumstances, personal or otherwise, which would prevent you from accepting suitable work.
Reasonable effort to find work means making personal efforts to secure suitable work by contacting persons with hiring authority, union local, etc., or doing those things reasonable for you to do in regard to your occupation which would result in your finding employment as soon as possible. After a reasonable period of time, you must expand your efforts and seek work in related fields that utilize a lesser skill.
File a claim
A claim for Unemployment Insurance may be filed in person at any Employment Security Department Office or on forms for filing claims by mail, which have been placed in most public buildings.
Filing your unemployment claim via ArkLine: Arkansas' Interactive Voice Response System (ArkLine) for
Filing Weekly Unemployment Insurance Benefits by Telephone:
| Applicants | 1-501-907-2590 |
| Employers | 1-501-907-2591 |
Available in Spanish
Available for Filing Weekly Claims
Monday through Friday
6:00 am to 6:00 pm
Sunday 12:01 am to 6:00 pm
Available for General Information
Sunday through Saturday
By using your touch-tone telephone Arkansas Employment Security Department provides a quick and efficient way to file your weekly claim for benefits. ArkLine provides you with updated information. In addition, ArkLine can be used to verify when your weekly claim was processed.
Read the following instructions carefully before you make your first call.
To File Weekly Claims by Telephone You Need:
- A touch-tone or dial-pulse telephone
- Your social security number
- Your personal identification number or PIN
- Your total gross earnings and hours worked for the week you are claiming
If you use a dial-pulse telephone, set switch to tone.
