Amazon absolutely pays unemployment taxes to NYS Department of Labor - there's no way around it for any employer in New York. I think your supervisor was either misinformed or trying to discourage you from filing. I worked at an Amazon warehouse upstate for about a year before getting let go, and I received my unemployment benefits without any major issues. The process took about 2-3 weeks for my first payment after filing online at my.ny.gov. Just make sure you file as soon as possible since there's a waiting period, and have all your employment documentation ready including start/end dates and reason for termination. Even if they try to contest it during adjudication, you have the right to appeal. Don't let them intimidate you out of benefits you've earned!

Amazon definitely pays unemployment taxes to NYS Department of Labor - your supervisor was either misinformed or trying to discourage you from filing. I got terminated from the Amazon warehouse in Long Island about 4 months ago and successfully received my benefits through NYS DOL. The whole process took about 2-3 weeks for my first payment after I filed online. Make sure you apply immediately at my.ny.gov since there's a one-week waiting period before payments start. Have your employment dates, final pay stub, and any termination documentation ready when you file. Even if Amazon tries to contest your claim during adjudication (which they sometimes do for productivity-related terminations), you still have the right to appeal their decision. Don't let them intimidate you - you worked there for 8 months and earned those benefits!

Also wanted to add - if you're really stuck without any device, some community centers and workforce development offices have computers you can use for government stuff like this. Call 211 and they can help you find locations near you. Don't let them suspend your benefits over something like this!

Just went through this same situation last month! If you have a smartphone, that's totally fine to use. Download the Teams app and test it beforehand to make sure your camera/mic work. Also heads up - they might ask you to show your ID on camera, so have that ready. The whole thing was way less stressful than I thought it would be. Good luck! 🤞

Just make sure you file your weekly claims on time every week and report all earnings honestly. Missing even one weekly claim can mess up your whole benefit year and you might not be able to make it up later.

Another tip - if you had any salary increases or bonuses during your base period, make sure those are reflected correctly in your wage history. Sometimes employers don't report quarterly wages accurately to NYS Department of Labor right away. You can check your wage history online through the NY.gov unemployment portal to verify everything looks correct. If there are discrepancies, you can request a wage investigation which might increase your benefit calculation if higher wages weren't initially included.

If you're having trouble getting through to NYS Department of Labor to check your wage history or get questions answered about your potential benefit amount, I used a service called Claimyr (claimyr.com) that helped me actually reach a live agent. They have a video demo at https://youtu.be/qyftW-mnTNI showing how it works. Was worth it for me since I couldn't get through on my own after trying for days.

One more thing to consider - if you do get laid off, file your claim immediately even if you're getting severance pay. The waiting period starts from when you file, not when the severance runs out. I made the mistake of waiting until my severance ended and lost out on a week of benefits because of the mandatory waiting week. Also, severance typically won't affect your eligibility as long as you're genuinely unemployed and available for work.

I totally agree with you Lara! When I first started my claim, I was so confused about whether the remaining balance was what I'd get that week or the total left. It would be so helpful if they had a simple explanation right on the page that says something like "This is your total benefits remaining - divide by your weekly amount to see how many weeks you have left." The interface could definitely be more user-friendly for people who are already stressed about being unemployed.

I wish they would also show a breakdown of how they calculated that remaining balance in the first place. Like, I understand it's based on my earnings history, but it would be helpful to see "Your highest quarter earnings were $X, so your weekly benefit is $Y, and your total benefit year amount is $Z." Right now it just shows the number without any context about how they got there. Makes it hard to double-check if everything looks right with your claim.