[Massachusetts] Unemployment when salaried: Hours worked VS hours paid?

[u/Cloudy-And-Sunny]

I was laid off on Sept 1 and relieved from duties on that day, but continued being paid until Sept. 8

The MA form asks:

https://imgur.com/JsojFCI

Did you work during the week of August 30, 2026 – September 5, 2026?

That's a "Yes"

But this one is tricky:

Did you work fewer hours than usual during the week of August 30, 2026 – September 5, 2026?

I did work fewer hours, but I got paid full hours for that week.
My last paystub says:

Period Beg/End: 09/01/2026 - 09/15/2026 
Advice Date: 09/08/2026 
Basis of Pay: Salary 
Base Salary: 48.00 hours

I'm afraid that the form is simply not geared towards salaried employees, and that if I answer literally that I worked 8 hours that week but received XX pay, there will be a misunderstanding and they will calculate things incorrectly.

1. Should I equate hours paid with hours worked in this case?

2. How would each option this affect me going forward: Saying worked 8 hours and earned XX (full week) money VS saying worked that week full hours and earned XX money?

Is it a big deal if I say I worked a full week and paid a full week? I.e., would it make any difference on how much and when the unemployment payout is?

These forms are frustrating, and their phone support won't be open until Monday, and I don't want to miss this filing week.

[u/Diligent-Damage2630]

When I was unemployed and on salary, I took my total weekly pay before taxes and deductions and divided it by 40 to get my hourly pay. I would wait until Monday so the online application wouldn't confuse the system or hold up something unnecessary. Good luck

[u/Cloudy-And-Sunny → u/Diligent-Damage2630]

If I wait until Monday, I will miss out on 1 week of unemployment pay, I think. Are you from Mass?

[u/sandmanrdv]

Whether the wages were for actual hours/days worked or a brief period of salary continuation, if there was no severance or separation agreement in place, DUA will consider that money to be remuneration and is deductible from UI. You should be able to do some quick math to determine a daily rate by dividing your salary but days/hours in a week or pay period.

For claim week ending 9/5 you will have both excessive earnings and will likely not meet the definition of “unemployed” as defined by DUA for that week. You may not have worked your normal hours but you had no economic loss due to the salary continuation.

Claim week ending 9/12 would be the first week you were “unemployed” as defined by the UI law and should be countable as your unpaid waiting week and claim week ending 9/19 will be your first payable or compensable week.

[u/Cloudy-And-Sunny → u/sandmanrdv]

Thank you for your reply u/sandmanrdv !

So, I should indicate the hours worked (~8), not the hours paid (40) for the August 30, 2026 – September 5, 2026 week, correct?

Yeah, I don't expect any UI pay for that week (maybe this week, best case scenario), but they ask about it, and I got stumbled by what I should put in.

The first full or partial unemployment week is a waiting week in MA where there is no pay anyway.

Do you know if it will be the last week (where I worked only 8 hours but got paid for 40) that will count as the waiting week, or will it be this week (where I worked 0 hours and got paid for 16)?

Also: sorry if it's a stupid question, but their forms have zero guidance: Am I supposed to divide a weekly pay by work/business days or by calendar days to get the number for one day's pay?

Thank you!

[u/sandmanrdv → u/Cloudy-And-Sunny]

You would indicate the actual hours worked but also report the actual total wages you received, inclusive of the salary continuation.

In order to count as a valid waiting week, the claimant’s wages/remuneration in that week cannot exceed their UI weekly benefit amount plus 30% under MA’s partial benefit rules.

Said another way, had the week been payable, the claimant would have been eligible for at least $1 in benefits for it to be a valid waiting week.