Daughter's NY unemployment stuck in review for 20+ weeks - need urgent help

I went through something similar last year with my claim stuck in review for almost 3 months (though not as bad as 20 weeks, that's insane). What finally worked for me was contacting my state assembly member's office. They have direct channels to DOL and can often get things moving when regular calls fail. Have her call her local assembly member's constituent services office, explain the situation, and ask them to inquire with DOL on her behalf. They'll have her fill out a release form allowing them to advocate for her. In my case, my claim was processed within 10 days after my assembly member got involved.

omg 20 WEEKS?? thats crazy! tell her to keep certifying tho, when they finally approve it shell get all the backpay at once. at least thats what happened 2 my cousin

Unfortunately this is happening to A LOT of people right now. The NYSDOL system is completely overwhelmed after they implemented that new verification system in December. Your daughter needs to specifically request an "adjudication interview" when she calls - don't just accept the generic "it's under review" response. Also, make sure she's checking her online account AND her physical mail for any requests for additional documentation, as sometimes they send paper notices but not online ones (or vice versa). Also, pro tip: call exactly at 8:01 AM Monday morning. That's when their phone lines open and it's the best chance to get through without waiting for hours.

wait has she checked her online message center to see if they requested any documents?? sometimes they need id verification or employment records and if she missed responding to those requests that could be why its taking so long

I work as an employment counselor and see this all the time. Here's what your daughter should do: 1. Document EVERYTHING - dates of calls, names of representatives spoken to, what was promised, etc. 2. Request her case to be escalated to a supervisor. Use those exact words. 3. File what's called a "Request for Reconsideration" (Form TC-403) even though technically she hasn't been denied. This sometimes triggers a review. 4. Contact her state senator AND assembly member (find them at nysenate.gov/find-my-senator and nyassembly.gov/mem/search/). 5. If she has immediate financial hardship (which after 20 weeks I imagine she does), make sure to mention that specifically as there are provisions for expediting cases with severe hardship. The current average review time is showing as 4-6 weeks on the NYSDOL dashboard, so 20 weeks indicates something is stuck in the system.

I had this EXACT same issue happen earlier this year. Called for MONTHS and kept getting the same "under review" nonsense. Finally I discovered this service called Claimyr that gets you through to an actual NYSDOL agent without waiting on hold for hours. I was skeptical but desperate so I tried it. They connected me directly to an agent in about 10 minutes! The agent saw that my claim was stuck in some weird verification loop and fixed it on the spot. I got my backpay two weeks later. They have a video showing how it works: https://youtu.be/Rdqa1gKtxuE. Their website is claimyr.com - seriously worth checking out in your daughter's situation. 20 weeks is way too long to wait!

My son was in review for 16 weeks and we finally got it fixed last month!!! What we did was contact our assemblyman AND the department of labor ombudsman office. Seemed like once both were involved someone finally looked at his case. Don't give up!!! The system is a mess right now but keep pushing!!!!!

20 weeks is nuts! my friend had a 3 week wait and we thought THAT was bad. the system is broken!!

One other thing to consider: sometimes claims get stuck in review due to identity verification issues or income verification problems. Has she received any communication about verifying her identity through ID.me? That's often a silent hold-up in the system. Also, make sure she has uploaded all her income documentation through the document upload portal on her NYSDOL account. Sometimes the review is stuck because they're waiting for employer verification and the employer isn't responding. In that case, your daughter should try to contact her former employer's HR department to make sure they're responding to NYSDOL requests. Finally, sometimes system glitches occur when there are multiple claims or partial claims in the system. If she had any previous claims in the past 18 months, that could be causing a conflict.

Just wanted to give you an update on my suggestion about contacting your state representatives. I actually talked to someone else yesterday who had a similar issue and they got their claim resolved in just 8 days after contacting their state senator. The key is to be persistent and provide all the details - claim number, date filed, all contact attempts made so far, etc. Hope this helps!

did she lose her job or quit? if she quit they might be investigating if she had good cause that's why it's taking so long

Quick update - I just checked my timeline from when I used Claimyr, and from the time I spoke with an agent to getting my backpay was actually 9 days. The agent I talked to said that often claims get stuck in what they call "pending purgatory" where without manual intervention they can stay under review indefinitely. The key is getting to someone who has the authority to actually look at the claim details.

I'd like to address something important: while your daughter waits for this to resolve, make sure she continues certifying every single week without fail. Even one missed certification can create problems with backpay. Also, remind her that when the backpay does come through, it will likely be taxable income, so setting aside some for taxes is advisable. One more thing to check: has she verified that her direct deposit information is correctly entered in the system? Sometimes claims appear to be under review when in reality payments were attempted but failed due to incorrect banking information.

you guys shud try calling right when they open... my brother got thru that way

I'm so frustrated for your daughter! The system is clearly failing people who need help most. Please come back and let us know what ends up working - it helps others who are stuck in similar situations.