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I had such a hard time getting through to NYS Department of Labor to ask about this exact question last month. Kept getting busy signals and when I finally got through they transferred me three times. Finally used this service called Claimyr (claimyr.com) that helped me get connected to an actual agent who explained the whole employer contribution system. They have a video demo at https://youtu.be/qyftW-mnTNI that shows how it works - basically they handle the calling for you so you don't have to sit on hold forever.
wait so you CAN get unemployment if you quit?? i thought that was impossible. my job has been cutting everyone's hours too but i assumed i was stuck there
Yes, but it's not automatic. You need to meet specific criteria for 'good cause' and the burden of proof is on you. Significant reduction in hours or changes to working conditions can qualify, but you typically need to show you tried to resolve it with your employer first and that a reasonable person would have quit under those circumstances.
The NYS Department of Labor system is so confusing with all these calculations! I still don't understand why my benefit amount was lower than I expected even though I made good money.
The whole system is broken. I've been waiting 9 weeks for my determination and they won't tell me ANYTHING. Meanwhile bills keep coming and they act like we don't exist. NYS Department of Labor is completely overwhelmed but won't admit it.
Chloe Mitchell
Just make sure you keep up with your weekly claims and job search requirements while collecting. The NYS Department of Labor is pretty strict about that stuff and you don't want to get hit with an overpayment later.
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Zoe Gonzalez
•Good point - what exactly are the job search requirements? I want to make sure I do everything right.
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Michael Adams
I had trouble getting through to NYS Department of Labor when I needed to verify some information about my claim status. If you run into issues reaching them by phone, I found this service called Claimyr that helped me get connected to an actual agent. They have a website at claimyr.com and there's a demo video at https://youtu.be/qyftW-mnTNI showing how it works. Really saved me a lot of frustration with busy signals.
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Alexis Robinson
•Interesting, I might need to check that out. The NYS Department of Labor phone lines are always jammed.
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