Current unemployment rate affecting NYS Department of Labor benefit duration - what should I expect?
I'm trying to figure out how the current unemployment rate impacts my benefit timeline. Filed my initial claim about 6 weeks ago and wondering if the rate of unemployment right now affects how long I can collect or if there are any extensions available. My regular UI is supposed to run out in March and I'm still actively job searching but the market seems pretty tough. Does anyone know what the current rate means for benefit extensions or if NYS Department of Labor adjusts anything based on economic conditions?
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Cedric Chung
The unemployment rate in NY is around 4.2% as of the latest data, which is considered relatively low. Unfortunately, this means no extended benefits are triggered - those only kick in when unemployment hits certain thresholds. Your regular UI benefits are still 26 weeks regardless of the current rate.
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Hailey O'Leary
•Thanks for the info. So basically no chance of extensions unless things get much worse economically?
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Talia Klein
yeah the rate doesn't really help us individual claimants much when its low like this. been looking for work for 3 months and even tho the numbers look good on paper, finding a decent job is still hard
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Maxwell St. Laurent
The unemployment rate is a lagging indicator anyway. What matters more for your claim is meeting the weekly work search requirements and documenting everything properly. Make sure you're logging 3 work search activities per week in your job search record. The current rate won't affect your individual claim processing.
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PaulineW
•Wait, I thought it was only 2 work search activities required? I've been doing 2 this whole time...
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Maxwell St. Laurent
•It's 3 activities per week for most claimants. You should check your claim requirements on the NYS Department of Labor website to make sure you're meeting the correct number.
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Annabel Kimball
I had trouble getting through to NYS Department of Labor to ask about this exact thing last month. Kept getting busy signals and the callback system never worked. Finally used this service called Claimyr (claimyr.com) that helped me get connected to an actual agent. They have a video demo at https://youtu.be/qyftW-mnTNI showing how it works. The agent explained that unemployment rates only trigger extended benefits during severe economic downturns, not the current situation.
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Chris Elmeda
•How much does that service cost? Seems like something that should be free from NYS Department of Labor directly.
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Annabel Kimball
•It's worth it when you can't get through any other way. Saved me hours of calling and redialing.
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Jean Claude
The whole system is frustrating. Low unemployment rate sounds good but doesn't help when you're one of the people still looking. At least your claim should process normally though - mine got stuck in adjudication for weeks because of some computer glitch.
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Talia Klein
Just keep filing your weekly claims and documenting your job search. The rate might be low now but things can change pretty quickly in the economy.
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