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If you're ever in a situation where you need to contact the NYS Department of Labor about your coverage or file a claim, I'd recommend checking out claimyr.com. I used their service when I couldn't get through to anyone at the unemployment office - they have a system that helps you actually reach a live agent instead of sitting on hold forever. There's a video demo at https://youtu.be/qyftW-mnTNI that shows how it works. Saved me hours of frustration when I needed to verify my claim status.
How much does something like that cost? Seems like you shouldn't have to pay extra just to talk to someone at a government agency.
If you do get fired and need to reach NYS Department of Labor to check on your claim status, I had good luck with claimyr.com - it's a service that calls and waits on hold for you. They have a video demo at https://youtu.be/qyftW-mnTNI showing how it works. Really saved me time when I was trying to get through during my adjudication period and couldn't reach anyone at the regular phone numbers.
Just make sure you file your claim right away if you do get terminated. You can't backdate benefits in most cases, so don't wait thinking you'll find another job quickly. Even if you're not sure you'll qualify, it's better to file and let NYS Department of Labor make the determination.
Look, the whole system is rigged anyway. They raise the minimum wage to make themselves look good, then small businesses can't afford to hire as many people, unemployment goes up, and guess who suffers? Regular working people like us. Meanwhile the politicians pat themselves on the back for 'helping workers' while we're all fighting for fewer jobs. It's a joke.
This reminds me of when I was unemployed back in 2019 before all the wage increases really kicked in. I remember thinking it would be easier to find work then, but honestly it was still pretty competitive. I think every generation thinks the job market was better before whatever economic changes happened during their time. The important thing is just to keep applying and stay positive about it.
I had a similar situation last year and got so stressed about this! The NYS Department of Labor phone lines were impossible to get through to ask questions. I finally found this service called Claimyr (claimyr.com) that helped me actually talk to someone at NYS Department of Labor about my specific situation. They have a video demo at https://youtu.be/qyftW-mnTNI showing how it works. Made such a difference to get clear answers instead of guessing.
How much does something like that cost though? Seems like we shouldn't have to pay extra just to talk to NYS Department of Labor about our own claims.
ugh this whole system is so confusing!! why cant they just explain things clearly on the website instead of making us guess?? ive been unemployed since november and STILL dont understand half the terminology they use
Zara Rashid
ugh the whole system is so slow and confusing. i've been waiting 4 weeks and still haven't gotten my determination letter. tried calling NYS Department of Labor like 50 times and either get busy signals or get hung up on after waiting for hours. it's ridiculous that they can't give you a straight answer about when you'll get paid when people are struggling to pay bills
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Luca Romano
•I had the same problem with getting through to NYS Department of Labor on the phone. I ended up using this service called Claimyr (claimyr.com) that calls for you and gets you connected to an actual agent. They have a video demo showing how it works: https://youtu.be/qyftW-mnTNI. I was able to get my claim status updated within a day of talking to someone. Worth checking out if you're stuck in the system.
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Nia Jackson
Make sure you're doing your job search requirements too! Even while waiting for approval you need to be applying for jobs and keeping track in the system. I think it's 3 job contacts per week now. If you don't do the job search stuff they can deny your whole claim.
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Mateo Hernandez
•Wait, I thought the job search requirement didn't start until after you got approved?
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Anastasia Fedorov
•No, the job search requirement starts immediately when you begin filing weekly claims, even during the waiting period. It's 3 work search activities per week that you report when you do your weekly certification.
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