oh this reminds me of when my brother got laid off from his construction job and his employer tried to say he quit! it was such a mess but he had witnesses who saw him get laid off with the whole crew. anyway the hearing went fine once he brought his coworkers to testify. employers try this stuff all the time but if you have proof you should be ok

Just went through something similar last year when my employer contested after 3 weeks. The key thing to remember is that even if they're allowed to contest late, you don't automatically lose your benefits or have to pay anything back unless they can actually prove misconduct or that you quit voluntarily. Keep collecting your benefits while the hearing process plays out - they won't stop payments just because of a contest. Document everything about your layoff situation and stay calm. The hearing officers are pretty good at spotting when employers are just fishing or trying to save money on their unemployment insurance rates.

Just remember they can also deny you if you're going to school full-time or if you're not actively looking for work. The 'able and available' requirement is pretty strict.

Another thing to watch out for is the earnings limit while collecting benefits. If you do any part-time work, you need to report ALL earnings honestly on your weekly certification, even if it's just a few hours. They cross-reference with employer records and getting caught not reporting income is considered fraud, which can disqualify you permanently. Also, make sure your reason for separation matches exactly what your employer reports - any discrepancies can trigger an investigation that delays your benefits for weeks.

just dont work more than 3 days and youll be fine, been doing uber on weekends and never had issues

The whole system is so confusing! I'm terrified of making a mistake and having to pay back benefits. Why can't they just give clear guidelines on their website?

Going through this thread has been so reassuring - I'm currently dealing with a forfeit week myself and was starting to panic! Based on everyone's advice, I've already checked my Determinations section and found a vague notice about "income reporting discrepancy" but no specific details. I'm definitely going to follow the game plan everyone's outlined here: gather all my pay stubs, create a timeline of work dates vs what I reported, and then bite the bullet on calling DOL (or maybe try that claimyr service people mentioned). One question for those who've been through this - how long did it typically take to get the issue resolved once you actually spoke with an agent? I'm worried about my upcoming certifications being affected while this gets sorted out. Thanks to everyone for sharing their experiences - it's made this whole situation feel way less scary! 🙏

Ugh, I'm literally going through the EXACT same thing right now! Just saw a forfeit week pop up on my payment history yesterday and I've been freaking out about it. Reading through everyone's experiences here is giving me so much relief - sounds like it's usually just a reporting error that can be fixed. I'm pretty sure I messed up my work reporting too. Had some weird part-time shifts that spanned across certification periods and I think I got confused about which week to report them under. The determination notice I found online is super vague though - just says "benefit payment issue" with no real details. Planning to spend tomorrow morning getting all my pay stubs organized and creating that timeline like everyone suggested before I attempt to call. Has anyone tried calling first thing in the morning? Wondering if that increases chances of getting through faster. Thanks to everyone sharing their stories - this thread is honestly saving my sanity right now! The thought of losing future payments was keeping me up all night but now I feel like there's actually hope this can get resolved 🙏

Also remember you'll need to file weekly claims and meet job search requirements. NYS Department of Labor requires 3 job contacts per week minimum, and you need to keep detailed records in case they audit your job search log. Don't forget about the waiting week either - your first week won't be paid.

Just want to add that if you've had multiple jobs or income changes throughout the year, the quarter-based calculation can work in your favor. NYS DOL looks at your highest earning quarter, so if you had a period where you made more than $900/week (overtime, bonus quarters, etc.), that could boost your benefit calculation. Also worth noting that the $504 maximum gets adjusted annually for inflation, so it might be slightly different by the time you actually need to file. The base period can be tricky to understand - it's not your most recent quarters, but the first 4 of the last 5 completed calendar quarters before you file your claim.