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I had such a nightmare trying to reach NYS Department of Labor when I needed to clarify my benefit status last year. Kept getting busy signals for weeks. Finally used this service called Claimyr (claimyr.com) that actually got me through to a real person at the unemployment office. They have a demo video at https://youtu.be/qyftW-mnTNI showing how it works. Saved me so much frustration dealing with the phone system.
I had a similar issue with getting through to NYS Department of Labor about my overpayment questions. After weeks of busy signals and dropped calls, I found this service called Claimyr at claimyr.com that actually got me connected to a real person at NYS Department of Labor. They have a video demo at https://youtu.be/qyftW-mnTNI showing how it works. Might be worth checking out if you need to clarify anything about your overpayment before filing taxes.
How much does something like that cost? Seems like we shouldn't have to pay extra just to talk to someone at our own unemployment office
File your taxes for sure! I owed money back to unemployment too and my tax guy said it's totally separate. The worst thing you can do is not file because then you get in trouble with taxes AND unemployment. At least if you file your taxes you're only dealing with one government agency being mad at you lol
this whole system is RIGGED against workers! Of course employers fight claims because it costs them money. Meanwhile we're the ones who need to eat and pay rent but they make us jump through hoops with NYS Department of Labor just to save a few bucks on their taxes
Just went through this myself. Your employer can contest your claim within 10 days if they think you weren't eligible (like if they claim you quit instead of being laid off). But if you were legitimately laid off due to lack of work, you should be fine. Keep any documentation about your layoff just in case.
Just want to add that the State Unemployment Tax (SUT) rate is separate from the federal FUTA rate. In NY you also have to factor in the Reemployment Service Fund which is 0.075% on top of your regular UI rate. Plus there's disability benefits tax too.
Emily Jackson
The work search requirement is what trips up a lot of people. NYS Department of Labor expects you to prove you're genuinely looking for work, not just collecting benefits. Keep detailed logs of every application, interview, and job fair you attend. They can audit your work search activities at any time.
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Aisha Abdullah
•Good point about keeping records. I've been tracking everything in a spreadsheet but wasn't sure if that was enough documentation.
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Liam Mendez
Just wanted to add that if you're partially employed (working reduced hours), you might still qualify for partial benefits. NYS Department of Labor has formulas for calculating partial payments based on your reduced earnings.
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