I work as a substitute paraprofessional and just went through this process successfully last summer. One thing I'd add to all the great advice here is to make sure you understand the difference between "reasonable assurance" for different types of school positions. As substitutes, we're definitely in a better spot than regular teachers, but the language you use in your application matters a lot. When I filed, I specifically stated that while my district keeps a substitute list, being on that list doesn't guarantee any work hours or income - it just means they might call me if they need coverage. I also mentioned that substitute para positions are even more limited than teacher subs since there are fewer para absences overall. The key is being honest but strategic about how uncertain our summer income really is. I got approved after about 4 weeks, and it made a huge difference financially. Don't let the horror stories discourage you - many of us do qualify, we just need to present our cases clearly.

I'm a substitute custodian and have been reading through all these responses with great interest. It's really helpful to see so many different perspectives from various school employees. What strikes me about all the successful cases mentioned is the emphasis on documenting the unpredictable nature of our work. For custodial subs, we face the same challenges - while the district might keep us on their call list, there's absolutely no guarantee of work hours during summer when most maintenance is done by the regular full-time staff. I'm planning to apply this year and will definitely follow the advice about being very specific regarding the per-diem status and lack of guaranteed income. Has anyone here dealt with custodial or maintenance substitute positions specifically? I'm wondering if there are any unique considerations for our type of school support role when it comes to the "reasonable assurance" determination.

Based on your work history, you might actually qualify! With 8 months at $15/hour for 20-25 hours weekly, that's roughly $300-375 per week in gross wages. Over 8 months, you likely earned well over the $2,600 base period requirement. Your weekly benefit would be 50% of your average weekly wage during your highest quarter, so potentially around $150-180 per week rather than the $104 minimum. Definitely worth applying - you can do it online at my.ny.gov and it only takes about 30 minutes to complete the initial application.

Also keep in mind that you need to be unemployed through no fault of your own to qualify. If you were laid off or your hours were cut, that should work in your favor. But if you quit voluntarily, you might face additional hurdles. When you apply, they'll ask for your reason for separation from employment, so make sure you're honest about the circumstances. The good news is that even if your initial claim gets denied, you can appeal the decision if you think it was wrong.

One thing I'd add is to make sure you're still meeting the "actively seeking work" requirement during your move. NYS DOL expects you to be available for work, so if you're going to be unavailable for a few days while physically relocating, you might want to plan your move around your weekly certification schedule. Also, keep documentation of your job search activities in both cities during the transition - it shows you're still actively looking even while relocating.

Just to echo what others have said - you should be totally fine moving within New York state! I moved from Buffalo to NYC while on unemployment about 6 months ago and it was seamless. The most important thing is updating your address in the system right away. Also, don't forget to update your address with USPS for mail forwarding - sometimes they send important notices by mail and you don't want to miss anything. Good luck with your move to Syracuse!

One thing - you still have to meet the job search requirements even for partial unemployment. Keep track of your work search activities because they can ask for your log anytime during certification.

Just went through this exact same situation at my job! The key thing is to file online at labor.ny.gov and when you do your weekly certifications, always report your gross earnings (before taxes). The system will automatically calculate how much partial benefit you get. Also keep all your pay stubs - they sometimes ask for proof of your reduced earnings. The whole process was way easier than I expected once I actually started it. Good luck!

I'm dealing with this exact same issue right now! Been 4 days since I completed the ID.me verification and still no confirmation email or status update in my unemployment account. The whole process is so unclear - you'd think they'd have better communication about something this important. Thanks for posting this question because the responses here have been really helpful. I'm going to try checking the Claims Status section like someone mentioned, and if that doesn't show anything I might have to bite the bullet and use one of those callback services to actually get through to a human.

I went through ID.me verification for NY unemployment about 6 months ago and had a similar experience - no immediate confirmation and lots of uncertainty about whether it worked. Here's what I learned: the system can take up to 5 business days to fully sync between ID.me and NYSDOL, which is way longer than it should be. The most reliable way to check is definitely the "Claims Status" section that others mentioned - that's where you'll see "Identity Verified" if it actually went through. Also, make sure you completed the final authorization step where ID.me asks permission to share your verification with NYSDOL - that's a separate click that's easy to miss. If it's been more than a week and you still don't see verification status updated anywhere, don't keep trying the verification process repeatedly. The system can flag you for multiple attempts. At that point you really need to speak with an agent who can check what happened on their end. The callback services people mentioned here are legitimate and honestly worth it when you're stuck - I wasted way too much time trying to get through the regular phone lines before I realized there were better options.