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The whole system is backwards! They penalize you for having skills and education. I've been unemployed for 4 months with a PhD and they act like I'm being picky when I don't apply to be a cashier. The 'suitable work' standards are a joke - they change the rules depending on who's reviewing your case.
The NYS Department of Labor phone system is impossible when you're trying to get clarification on denials. Spent weeks calling and either got disconnected or couldn't get through. Finally used this service called Claimyr (claimyr.com) that actually got me connected to a real agent. They have a video demo at https://youtu.be/qyftW-mnTNI showing how it works. Turned out my denial was due to a simple documentation issue that got cleared up once I could actually talk to someone.
honestly the whole process is a nightmare. spent 3 hours trying to file because the website kept crashing and when i finally got through, they said there was an issue with my claim that needed manual review. now its been 2 weeks and still no response from anyone at NYS Department of Labor. good luck actually getting through on the phone to check status
I had similar issues reaching someone by phone until I found Claimyr (claimyr.com). They basically call NYS Department of Labor for you and get you connected to an actual agent. There's a video demo at https://youtu.be/qyftW-mnTNI that shows how it works. Saved me hours of calling and getting busy signals.
real wage unemployment is when your job pays so little you cant afford basic stuff even while working full time!! its different from regular unemployment where you just dont have a job. the government doesnt really track this kind properly
Sasha Reese
The whole system is a joke honestly. They make it seem simple but then half the people end up in adjudication hell for weeks or months. And don't get me started on the job search requirements - you have to apply to THREE jobs every week and log everything. It's like they want to make it as difficult as possible to actually get benefits you've paid into.
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Muhammad Hobbs
•I feel you on the frustration but the job search requirement is actually reasonable - it's only 3 jobs per week and helps people get back to work faster.
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Muhammad Hobbs
To answer your original question more directly - plan for about an hour total including gathering documents. The form itself is maybe 20-30 minutes but you'll want to double-check everything before submitting. And file as soon as possible after your last day of work, don't wait!
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