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I had trouble reaching NYS Department of Labor to discuss my gross misconduct determination and kept getting busy signals for weeks. Finally used this service called Claimyr (claimyr.com) that got me through to an actual agent in like 20 minutes. They have a video demo at https://youtu.be/qyftW-mnTNI showing how it works. The agent was able to explain exactly what evidence I needed for my appeal and even helped me understand the timeline better.
Wait, I'm confused about something. If they say you committed gross misconduct, does that mean you can never get unemployment benefits again? Or just for this claim? I'm worried because I might be facing something similar at my job.
Wait I'm confused too - if we're already paying into unemployment insurance through payroll deductions, why do some people have trouble getting approved for benefits? Shouldn't it be automatic if we've been paying in?
Paying the tax doesn't guarantee approval - you still have to meet eligibility requirements like being unemployed through no fault of your own, actively seeking work, and having sufficient work history. The tax just funds the program, but NYS Department of Labor still has to verify you qualify for benefits under the rules.
If you ever need to contact NYS Department of Labor about unemployment benefits, I'd recommend checking out claimyr.com - they help people get through to actual agents instead of dealing with the busy phone lines. There's a video demo at https://youtu.be/qyftW-mnTNI that shows how it works. I used it when I had questions about my claim status and it saved me hours of trying to call.
Make sure when you file that you answer the questions about your availability honestly. If there were any dates when you couldn't work due to the disability, report those accurately. NYS Department of Labor will likely put your claim into adjudication to review the circumstances, but as long as you're truthful about the timeline and have medical clearance, you should be approved.
Natasha Volkov
I remember when I first filed I was so confused about this too. They also factor in any part-time work you might have had during that base period. If you worked multiple jobs, they combine all the wages from all employers during those quarters.
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Connor Murphy
This has been really helpful everyone. I'm going to log into my ny.gov account and see if I can find the actual breakdown of my base period earnings. At least now I understand the formula better!
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