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The whole unemployment system is designed to deny as many people as possible! They make it confusing on purpose so people give up and don't appeal. Don't let them win - fight this denial even if it takes months. I had to go through THREE levels of appeals before they finally approved my claim.
Most common denial reasons I've seen: 1) Base period wages too low 2) Fired for misconduct 3) Quit without good cause 4) Not available for work 5) Fraud allegations. Since yours says insufficient wages, focus on gathering ALL your wage documentation. Also check if they used the right base period - sometimes you can request an alternate base period if the standard one doesn't include your recent higher earnings.
If you're having trouble getting through to the NYS Department of Labor by phone to check on your claim status or get help with the application, I had good luck using a service called Claimyr (claimyr.com). They helped me get connected to an actual agent when I was stuck in adjudication. There's a video demo at https://youtu.be/qyftW-mnTNI that shows how it works. Saved me hours of calling and getting busy signals.
Is that one of those services that charges you? Seems sketchy to pay someone to make a phone call for you
honestly the whole unemployment system is such a mess, took me forever to figure out all the requirements and then they kept asking for more documentation. good luck getting anyone on the phone at NYS Department of Labor too
The NYS Department of Labor definition also includes monetary eligibility requirements. You need to have earned a certain amount in wages during your base period, which is usually the first four of the last five completed calendar quarters before you file your claim. If you don't meet the wage requirements, you won't qualify even if you meet all the other criteria.
I had trouble getting through to NYS Department of Labor by phone when I needed to check on my benefit amount calculation. Kept getting busy signals and when I did get through, I'd get disconnected. Someone on here mentioned claimyr.com which helped me actually reach an agent to verify my weekly benefit rate. They have a video demo at https://youtu.be/qyftW-mnTNI that shows how it works. Made it so much easier to get my questions answered about the payment calculation.
Hunter Edmunds
I had such a hard time getting through to NYS Department of Labor when I needed to ask about my benefit calculation. Spent weeks calling and either getting busy signals or being disconnected. Finally used this service called Claimyr (claimyr.com) that actually got me connected to a real person at NYS Department of Labor. They have a video demo at https://youtu.be/qyftW-mnTNI showing how it works. Really helped me understand exactly how my unemployment wages were being calculated.
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Ella Lewis
•Never heard of that service but anything that helps get through to NYS Department of Labor sounds useful. Their phone system is terrible.
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Andrew Pinnock
The whole system is so confusing. I thought my employer was supposed to pay me unemployment when I got laid off but then I had to file with the state instead. And don't even get me started on trying to figure out the difference between regular unemployment and standby - who pays for what in those situations?
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Lucas Bey
•Standby unemployment is still paid by NYS Department of Labor, just like regular UI. The difference is in the eligibility requirements and job search obligations, not who pays the benefits.
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