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THE WHOLE SYSTEM IS DESIGNED TO KEEP US FROM GETTING OUR BENEFITS!!!! They WANT it to be impossible to reach them!!! I filed in January and my claim is STILL pending with no explanation. Tried calling 200+ times. This isn't incompetence - it's DELIBERATE!!!!!
While frustrating, the delays aren't deliberate. ESD is dealing with staffing shortages and increased claim complexity. They've implemented stronger verification due to the massive fraud during COVID. If you've been waiting since January, I'd recommend contacting your state representative's office immediately for assistance.
UPDATE: I finally got through! Combination of calling right at 8am and using the # key to bypass some menus. Was on hold for 67 minutes but eventually spoke with someone who was actually very helpful. Turns out they needed a clearer copy of my social security card (the one I uploaded was apparently too blurry). They're sending me a secure upload link and said my claim should move forward within 7-10 business days after I upload the clearer copy. Thanks everyone for your help and suggestions! Will update again when/if my claim gets approved.
dont forget to tell him to KEEP FILING WEEKLY CLAIMS even while this is being fixed!! so many people stop filing during issues and then lose weeks of benefits
Just to follow up on this thread - your son-in-law should expect to receive a "Request for Information" notice in his eServices account once he initiates the wage investigation. Make sure he responds to this promptly with all the documentation everyone has mentioned. After the investigation is complete, he'll receive a "Redetermination of Benefit" notice that should show his corrected benefit amount. Good luck!
My cousin had identity verification and his took like 3 weeks so I think there must be something else going on with your husbands claim maybe? Did he work in multiple states or something that would make it more complicated?
Just an update to my earlier comment - I checked with a friend who works at WorkSource, and she said the current average for ID verification is 8-10 weeks. However, if you're experiencing severe financial hardship (potential eviction, utilities being shut off, inability to afford medication), you can request an expedited review. You'll need to call and specifically use the phrase "financial hardship expedite request" and be prepared to provide details about your situation. Keep detailed records of every interaction (date, time, agent name if possible).
just curious is the brother in law ok?? that must be super stressful for him having his business go bankrupt and now having to deal with all that. family businesses are complicated!!
One more important detail: If your husband already had an unemployment claim that he was collecting on before this brief job, he should continue that claim. However, if this job paid significantly more than his previous job that the original claim was based on, he might benefit from filing a new claim after working enough hours to qualify. For just one week of work though, continuing the existing claim is almost certainly the better option.
Freya Ross
When I worked for ESD back in 2019, we specifically instructed claimants NOT to report obvious scam solicitations. The relevant question on weekly claims is asking about actual job offers, which means an employer has specifically selected you for a position after some form of application or interview process. Random unsolicited texts don't qualify. But I'm going to disagree slightly with some others here - if you receive what seems like a legitimate job offer through LinkedIn or a professional channel from an actual company, even if unsolicited, you should report that and be prepared to explain why you didn't pursue it if that's the case. Better safe than sorry with potentially legitimate offers.
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Romeo Barrett
•Thank you for this insider perspective! That really clarifies things. I've been getting both obvious scams and some borderline ones through LinkedIn that at least appear to be from real companies. I think I'll ignore the obvious scams but maybe follow up on the LinkedIn ones just to verify if they're legitimate before deciding whether to report them.
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Sara Unger
The ESD guidelines are frustratingly vague on what constitutes a "job offer" that must be reported. This is BY DESIGN so they can disqualify people later by claiming you should have reported something you didn't think was relevant. I've seen them penalize people for not reporting LinkedIn messages that the claimant thought were just networking attempts. The whole system is designed to trip people up and deny benefits whenever possible. My advice? Document EVERYTHING. Screenshot those scam texts and emails so if they ever question you, you can prove they were obvious scams. The burden of proof is ALWAYS on the claimant, NEVER on ESD.
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Justin Trejo
•While it's always good to document communications related to your claim, I think this view is overly pessimistic. ESD guidelines do specify that a job offer means an actual offer of employment from a legitimate employer, not random solicitations. The weekly claim questions are asking if you've refused any work during that week, which implies work that was actually offered to you specifically. They're not trying to disqualify people based on spam texts.
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