Wow, what a rollercoaster! I'm so glad you called OAH directly - that was brilliant advice from @Vanessa Chang. It's ridiculous how ESD's system shows these cryptic statuses without any explanation. I went through something similar 6 months ago and spent weeks panicking over confusing status updates. The fact that they ruled in your favor is huge! Even if ESD appeals to the Commissioner, you're in a much stronger position now. Keep copies of everything and don't let them intimidate you during this CRO process. You've already proven your case once!

This is exactly the kind of transparency we need more of in this community! @Lucy Taylor thank you for taking the time to call OAH and then coming back to update everyone. Your experience perfectly shows how misleading ESD's online status system is - "appealed" could mean literally anything, and "CRO Petition" sounds terrifying when you don't know what it means. The fact that you WON your appeal is fantastic news! I'm bookmarking this thread because the advice about calling OAH directly instead of ESD is gold. So many people probably give up when they see these confusing statuses without realizing there are actual humans who can explain what's happening. Best of luck with the Commissioner review - from what I've read, they don't often overturn ALJ decisions, especially on overpayment cases where credibility was a factor.

UPDATE 2: I found more evidence! I discovered that my company filed a WARN notice with the state about the layoffs, which completely contradicts their claim that I was fired for misconduct. This should be pretty solid proof that they're lying to Washington ESD.

Wow, finding that WARN notice is huge! That's basically an official government document proving your company laid people off for business reasons, not misconduct. I'd recommend making multiple copies of it before your appeal hearing and maybe even sending a copy to Washington ESD ahead of time. At this point, your employer is going to have a really hard time explaining how someone can be simultaneously laid off (per the WARN notice) and fired for misconduct (per their unemployment claim). You've got a rock-solid case now.

I just went through this same situation a few weeks ago! The waiting week rules definitely seem confusing at first, but here's what I learned from my experience: The key thing to understand is that there's no specific hour limit below 40 hours - it's all about your total earnings staying under your weekly benefit amount + $5. You can work your part-time job as long as your combined income (part-time wages + holiday pay) doesn't exceed that threshold. Since you just filed your initial claim yesterday, you'll need to wait for ESD to process it and send you your weekly benefit amount calculation. Once you have that number, you can determine if your projected earnings will be under the limit. For reporting purposes, make sure to put your part-time job wages in the regular work section of your weekly claim and the holiday pay in the "other income" section. The system is designed to handle both types of income and will calculate everything correctly if you input it accurately. My advice would be to keep detailed records of your hours and earnings during that first week, and if you're cutting it close to the earnings threshold, consider working slightly fewer hours just to be safe. It's better to be conservative during the waiting week and ensure it gets approved rather than risk having to serve another waiting week later. The whole process gets much less stressful once you have your benefit amount and understand exactly what your limits are. Hang in there!

I'm in almost the exact same situation! Just got laid off from my job at a warehouse and filed my claim earlier this week. Reading through everyone's responses here has been incredibly helpful - I was so confused about the waiting week rules before this. From what I'm gathering, the most important things are: 1) keep total earnings (part-time work + any other income like holiday pay) under your weekly benefit amount + $5, 2) work less than 40 hours, and 3) report everything accurately in the right sections when filing your weekly claim. I'm planning to pick up some shifts at a friend's restaurant while I job hunt, but now I know to be conservative with my hours during that first week to make sure my waiting week gets approved. The last thing I want is to have to serve another waiting week later because I worked too much or earned too much that first week. Thanks to everyone who shared their actual experiences and numbers - it makes this whole process so much less intimidating when you can see real examples of how it worked out for other people!

Update us on what happens! If you do manage to get through by phone, ask the agent to check if there are any flags or issues on your account causing the pending status. Sometimes there's a simple verification step needed that isn't obvious in the online portal.

That's awesome news Diego! So glad you got it resolved. This is exactly why I always tell people to call for payment issues - the messaging system just isn't built for time-sensitive problems like pending payments. The fact that there was an employer response holding things up shows how these issues often need immediate attention that only a phone agent can provide. Hopefully this helps other people in similar situations realize that sometimes you just have to bite the bullet and spend the morning trying to get through by phone.

One more thing - if you're getting close to exhausting your benefits and still haven't found work, look into other assistance programs like SNAP or local food banks. Don't wait until your benefits run out completely.

I'm in a similar situation - lost my manufacturing job after 6 years and just filed for unemployment. Reading through all these responses is really helpful but also kind of scary knowing there's a hard 26 week cutoff. I'm planning to be aggressive with my job search from day one. Has anyone here had success finding work in manufacturing after being on unemployment? I'm wondering if I should also look into other industries or stick with what I know. The job market seems pretty competitive right now.