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Don't forget you'll have to pay taxes on unemployment benefits! A lot of people get surprised by that at tax time. You can have them withhold 10% federal taxes when you certify your weekly claims.
Oh wow I didn't even think about taxes. So if I get $215 a week and don't withhold taxes, I'll owe money next year?
If you're having trouble getting through to the IRS about federal unemployment tax questions, I found this service called Claimyr that helps people reach government agencies by phone. They have a website at claimyr.com and there's a video demo at https://youtu.be/qyftW-mnTNI showing how it works. I used it to get through to the IRS when I had payroll tax questions and it saved me hours of being on hold.
Ugh the whole system is so frustrating! I got fired from my retail job for 'poor performance' which was basically just not selling enough store credit cards, and NYS Department of Labor approved my claim after 4 weeks of back and forth. Employers always try to fight it but most of the time they don't have enough evidence to prove actual misconduct.
Being late due to childcare might actually be considered good cause depending on your specific situation. If you didn't have reasonable alternatives for childcare and your employer wasn't accommodating, that could strengthen an appeal. Make sure you have documentation about your childcare situation and any communication with your employer about the attendance issues.
I do have some emails where I asked my supervisor about flexible start times because of daycare dropoff. She said no but didn't offer any alternatives. Would that help with an appeal?
Connor Byrne
I had issues with my employer not properly reporting my UI contributions last year and it caused problems when I filed for unemployment. Couldn't get through to anyone at NYS Department of Labor for weeks to sort it out. Finally found this service called Claimyr that helped me get connected to an actual person at the unemployment office. They have a website at claimyr.com and there's a video demo at https://youtu.be/qyftW-mnTNI showing how it works. Made the whole process way less frustrating than trying to call myself.
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Dmitry Petrov
•Good to know there are options if I run into problems later. Hopefully my new employer is handling everything correctly.
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Yara Elias
The whole system is just another way for them to take money out of our paychecks. I've been paying into unemployment for 15 years and never used it once, but god forbid I miss a payment...
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QuantumQuasar
•I get the frustration but it's insurance - you hope you never need it but you're glad it's there if you do. Better to have it and not need it than need it and not have it.
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