Stay positive! Most protests that are clearly frivolous get decided in favor of the claimant. If your employer laid you off due to budget cuts and you have documentation, that's pretty solid evidence that it wasn't misconduct on your part.

I'm going through a similar situation right now - filed about 3 weeks ago and just got the protest notice from my former employer yesterday. They're claiming I was terminated for poor performance, but I have emails showing I was meeting all my targets and the termination was really due to company downsizing. It's so stressful not knowing how long this will drag on! Reading through everyone's experiences here is really helpful though. Sounds like having good documentation is key, which I think I do. Hoping we both get favorable decisions soon!

Thanks everyone for all the helpful responses! I feel much more confident about filing my second claim now. It's reassuring to know this is a normal part of the unemployment system and not something unusual.

Just wanted to add that timing can be really important when filing your second claim. I made the mistake of waiting too long after my layoff to file, thinking I might find work quickly. Ended up losing out on a few weeks of benefits because you can't backdate claims very far. File as soon as you know you're going to be unemployed for more than a week or two - you can always stop claiming if you find work right away, but you can't recover those missed weeks if you wait too long to start the process.

Bottom line for the OP: buy your car, keep doing your job searches, file your weekly claims on time, and don't stress about it. Transportation is a necessity, not a luxury, especially when you're job hunting.

I went through the exact same worry when I needed to replace my car while on UI benefits last fall. Washington ESD definitely doesn't care about car purchases - they only track work activity and income. I bought a used car for around $9,000 and it never came up in any of my weekly claims or communications with ESD. Having reliable transportation actually made my job search much more effective since I could apply to positions further away and wasn't stressed about getting to interviews. Just make sure you budget for ongoing costs like insurance, gas, and potential repairs, but from an unemployment eligibility standpoint, you're completely fine to buy the car.

Just wanted to add that even if you do get denied initially, you can always appeal the decision. I know someone who got denied at first but won their appeal because the initial decision was wrong. Don't give up if the first answer isn't what you want to hear.

I went through something similar when I was laid off from my warehouse job. The key thing is to be completely honest about the circumstances of your layoff. Since your manager specifically said it was due to slow business and not performance issues, that should work in your favor. Being late occasionally typically isn't considered misconduct unless it was extreme or you were repeatedly warned about it. Make sure to emphasize in your application that you were laid off due to lack of work, not fired for cause. Also, don't delay applying - you want to get that waiting week started as soon as possible. Keep any documentation you have about the layoff and be prepared to provide it if they ask. Most people in your situation get approved without issues.

Final thought - don't let the 26 week limit make you take a bad job out of desperation. Use the time to find something that fits your skills and career goals. That's what the benefit is designed for.

Just wanted to add my experience - I was in a similar situation last year and used almost all 26 weeks. The key thing that helped me was setting up a weekly schedule to track everything: job applications, networking events, and benefit weeks remaining. I created a simple calendar that showed my benefit year end date and marked off each week as I filed my claims. It really helped reduce the anxiety of not knowing exactly where I stood. Also, don't forget that you can work part-time while collecting benefits (as long as you report it properly) - that helped me bridge the gap toward the end and led to my current full-time position.