I've been working in one full-time job for over 5 years. In the past year or so, I started driving for a couple ride-sharing companies to supplement my income.
Now, I'm being laid off from my primary job and I don't have a new full-time employer lined up yet. During the gap in work, I'm planning to substantially increase my ride-sharing work so that I can hopefully continue to pay most of my bills and debts. However, my expected income from ride-sharing is hardly a third of what I made in my full-time job.
Given these circumstances, is it legal for me to claim unemployment benefits, while receiving income from ride-sharing gigs, until I find a new full-time job with comparable pay to my previous job? Will the ride-sharing income reduce the amount of unemployment benefits that I can receive? Is there a limit to how many hours I can work in the ride-sharing job, while still receiving unemployment?
Personally, I'm generally against the idea of having any sort of dependency upon government-provided income. I've been on unemployment and food stamps before, and there were numerous times where dealing with the system nearly seemed more trouble than its worth. But, I've also got to keep a roof over my head and food in my belly. So, I'd like to know what my legal options for doing so are while I look for a new job in my usual profession.
Jurisdiction is Orang County, FL.
