Can't reach New York Unemployment? Claimyr connects you to a live NYDOL agent in minutes.
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Using Claimyr will:
- Connect you to a human agent at the NYDOL
- Skip the long phone menu
- Call the correct department
- Redial until on hold
- Forward a call to your phone with reduced hold time
- Give you free callbacks if the NYDOL drops your call
If I could give 10 stars I would
If I could give 10 stars I would If I could give 10 stars I would Such an amazing service so needed during the times when EDD almost never picks up Claimyr gets me on the phone with EDD every time without fail faster. A much needed service without Claimyr I would have never received the payment I needed to support me during my postpartum recovery. Thank you so much Claimyr!
Really made a difference
Really made a difference, save me time and energy from going to a local office for making the call.
Worth not wasting your time calling for hours.
Was a bit nervous or untrusting at first, but my calls went thru. First time the wait was a bit long but their customer chat line on their page was helpful and put me at ease that I would receive my call. Today my call dropped because of EDD and Claimyr heard my concern on the same chat and another call was made within the hour.
An incredibly helpful service
An incredibly helpful service! Got me connected to a CA EDD agent without major hassle (outside of EDD's agents dropping calls – which Claimyr has free protection for). If you need to file a new claim and can't do it online, pay the $ to Claimyr to get the process started. Absolutely worth it!
Consistent,frustration free, quality Service.
Used this service a couple times now. Before I'd call 200 times in less than a weak frustrated as can be. But using claimyr with a couple hours of waiting i was on the line with an representative or on hold. Dropped a couple times but each reconnected not long after and was mission accomplished, thanks to Claimyr.
IT WORKS!! Not a scam!
I tried for weeks to get thru to EDD PFL program with no luck. I gave this a try thinking it may be a scam. OMG! It worked and They got thru within an hour and my claim is going to finally get paid!! I upgraded to the $60 call. Best $60 spent!
Ask the community...
- DO post questions about your issues.
- DO answer questions and support each other.
- DO post tips & tricks to help folks.
- DO NOT post call problems here - there is a support tab at the top for that :)
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I'm dealing with this exact same nightmare right now! Been trying to get through for 3 weeks about a payment issue and it's beyond frustrating. Reading through all these suggestions is really helpful though. I think I'm going to try the multi-pronged approach - contact my state rep tomorrow morning, then try calling during those mid-morning hours that Aidan suggested, and if that doesn't work I'll look into the Claimyr service as a last resort. It's ridiculous that we have to jump through so many hoops just to talk to someone about our own benefits, but at least there are some actual solutions here instead of just "keep calling." Thanks everyone for sharing what actually worked!
Exactly! It's so frustrating that we need a whole strategy just to access our own benefits. I'm in a similar boat - been trying for over a week with no luck. The multi-pronged approach seems like the way to go. I'm also going to try that tip about selecting "filing a new claim" in the phone menu even though I'm not actually filing new - never would have thought of that trick. Good luck with your state rep contact tomorrow, hopefully one of us breaks through soon and can report back with success!
I'm going through the exact same thing right now! Just wanted to add one more option that helped me get some movement on my case - I filed a complaint with the NY Department of Labor's Office of Special Investigations through their website. It's under the "Report Fraud or Get Help" section. They're supposed to respond within 10 business days for payment issues. I submitted mine 3 days ago so still waiting to see if it works, but figured it's worth mentioning as another free option to try alongside the state rep contact and early morning calling strategies. The form asks for your claim details and specific issue, so have all your info ready. Really hoping one of these methods works for all of us dealing with this mess!
That's a great addition to the toolkit! I hadn't heard of the Office of Special Investigations option before. It's good to have another official channel to try, especially since it's free and has a specific response timeframe. I'm definitely going to file a complaint there too while I'm waiting to hear back from my state rep. Between all these suggestions - early morning calls, state rep contact, the OSI complaint, and the callback services as backup - hopefully at least one will break through this wall of silence. Thanks for sharing that resource!
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If it's just a weekly cert issue you might be able to fix it online through your my.ny.gov account. Check if there's a pending questionnaire or something you missed.
Already checked online, nothing pending. That's why I need to call.
I had success getting through by calling the 888-209-8124 number right at 8:00 AM on a Wednesday. The key is to call exactly when they open - I actually started dialing at 7:59 AM. Still had to wait about 45 minutes but that's way better than the 2+ hours I was waiting when calling later in the day. Also make sure you have all your info ready - claim number, SSN, PIN, and details about what happened with your certification. The agent was actually really helpful once I got through and was able to see exactly why my cert was rejected (I had accidentally put the wrong dates for a part-time job). Good luck!
@Giovanni Conti This is really helpful timing advice! I ve'been calling at random times and getting nowhere. Just to clarify - when you called right at 8 AM, did you get the busy signal at first and have to keep redialing, or did it go straight through to hold music? I want to make sure I m'doing this right when I try tomorrow morning.
@Giovanni Conti This is great advice! I ve'been calling at like 10 AM and waiting forever. Quick question - after you got through and they identified the wrong dates issue, did they have you resubmit the certification online or were they able to override it on their end? I m'dealing with what sounds like a similar problem and want to know what to expect once I finally get through to someone.
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I went through something similar with my master's in computer science last year. NYS Department of Labor actually has specific guidelines for professional-level job searches - you don't need to apply for minimum wage positions that clearly won't hire you. Focus on roles that match your education and experience level, even if they're slightly below your previous salary. The key is showing "reasonable" job search efforts. I kept a spreadsheet with all applications, including company responses about overqualification, and never had issues with my weekly certifications. Also consider reaching out to professional associations and alumni networks - NYS DOL counts networking activities as valid job search efforts too.
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Just wanted to add that when you're working part-time while on unemployment, make sure you report your work hours AND gross earnings for each week, not just one or the other. NYS Department of Labor needs both pieces of info to calculate your partial benefits correctly. Also, if you do file a new claim, they'll look at your base period earnings to determine your new weekly benefit amount - so if you earned more in recent quarters, your new claim might actually have a higher weekly benefit rate than your old one. Worth checking into!
That's really helpful about reporting both hours and earnings! I didn't realize they needed both. Quick question - when you say they look at base period earnings for a new claim, does that mean they completely ignore what was left on my old claim balance? Like if my old claim had $3000 left but expired, that money is just gone when I file the new claim?
@Alice Coleman Yes, unfortunately any remaining balance on an expired claim is lost when you file a new claim. The new claim starts fresh with new benefit amounts based on your recent earnings history. That s'why it s'important to use up your benefits before the benefit year expires if possible. However, if your new claim has a higher weekly benefit rate due to increased earnings, you might end up better off overall even though you lost that remaining balance.
@Shelby Bauman Just to clarify the timing aspect of your situation - if your regular UI claim ended in October, that benefit year has definitely expired (benefit years are 52 weeks). So you'd need to file a completely new claim, not reopen the old one. The good news is that if you worked last year after your original claim was filed, those earnings might qualify you for a higher weekly benefit amount on the new claim. When you file the new claim, make sure to mention the part-time seasonal work situation upfront so they can explain exactly how the partial benefit calculations will work. NYS Department of Labor is pretty good about walking you through the process once you get connected with them.
@GalacticGladiator This is super helpful, thanks! I was wondering about the timing - October to now is definitely past the 52 week mark so that makes sense about needing a new claim. One thing I'm still confused about though - when I file the new claim and mention the part-time seasonal work, will they set everything up automatically so I can just report my weekly earnings, or do I need to do something special to make sure I'm getting partial benefits calculated correctly?
Carlos Mendoza
I had success filing my self-employment claim but only after I got help reaching a NYS Department of Labor agent by phone. The online system kept rejecting my application and I couldn't figure out why. Turns out I was categorizing my income type wrong. If you're having trouble getting through to someone, I used a service called Claimyr (claimyr.com) that helped me get connected. They have a video demo at https://youtu.be/qyftW-mnTNI that explains how it works. Saved me weeks of calling and getting hung up on.
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LilMama23
•That's really helpful! I was dreading trying to call them. How quickly were you able to get through?
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Gabrielle Dubois
•hmm never heard of that but might be worth trying if the regular filing process doesn't work
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Zainab Mahmoud
Just make sure you have your Social Security earnings record too. Sometimes there's a mismatch between what you reported and what's in their system, especially if you had some W-2 work mixed with self-employment.
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Abigail bergen
•That's a great point about the earnings record! I actually had some W-2 income earlier in 2023 before going full freelance. Should I be worried if there's a discrepancy between what I reported on my taxes versus what shows up in their system?
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