Does unemployment give you back pay - NYS Department of Labor retroactive benefits question

Yes, you should definitely get back pay! When NYS Department of Labor approves your claim, they typically pay you retroactively from your original filing date. This is called retroactive benefits and it's standard practice. You should see those back payments in your next deposit or within a few business days. Make sure you've certified for all those weeks though - you need to go back and file your weekly claims for each week you were waiting.

same thing happened to me earlier this year, took forever to get through adjudication but i got all my back pay once it was approved. think it was like 5 weeks worth for me

The back pay should be automatic once your claim is approved, but sometimes there are glitches in the system. If you don't see the retroactive payments within a week, you'll need to call NYS Department of Labor to have them manually process the back weeks. I had to do this when my claim was delayed due to ID verification issues. Getting through to an agent can be really frustrating though - the phone lines are always busy and you often get disconnected. I actually found this service called Claimyr (claimyr.com) that helps you get through to NYS Department of Labor agents. They have a video demo at https://youtu.be/qyftW-mnTNI that shows how it works. Saved me hours of calling and getting hung up on.

The NYS Department of Labor SHOULD give you back pay but honestly their system is so messed up sometimes things fall through the cracks. I've seen people wait months for retroactive benefits that should have been automatic. Don't just assume it'll happen - keep checking your payment history and if you don't see those back payments within 10 business days, start making noise. File an appeal if you have to. This system is designed to make you give up and just accept losing money you're entitled to!

Wait I'm confused about this too because I thought you had to file your weekly claims to get paid? Like if you don't certify for a week you don't get benefits for that week? How does back pay work if you couldn't file weekly claims while your account was locked during adjudication???

This reminds me of when my sister went through something similar last year with her unemployment claim. She had some issue with her last employer not responding to NYS Department of Labor requests for information and her claim was stuck for like 2 months. When it finally got approved she did get all her back pay but it took forever and she had to call multiple times to make sure everything was processed correctly. The whole experience was really stressful for her because she has kids to feed and bills to pay. Honestly the unemployment system in this state really needs an overhaul, it's ridiculous how long these things take.

I went through this exact same situation a few months ago! My claim was held up for about 5 weeks due to some confusion with my separation reason. When it finally got approved, I did receive all the back pay automatically - it showed up as separate line items for each week I had missed. The key thing is that you need to make sure you go into your account and complete the weekly certification for each of those back weeks. There should be a section that lets you certify for previous weeks once your claim is active. If you don't see that option, definitely call them because sometimes the system doesn't automatically generate those back weeks for certification. The back pay for me came in two deposits - one smaller one a few days after approval and then the bulk of it about a week later. Keep checking your payment history and don't hesitate to follow up if it doesn't appear within 2 weeks!

Just wanted to share my recent experience since I literally just went through this exact situation! My claim was stuck in adjudication for 7 weeks due to an issue with my previous employer not responding to their requests. Got approved two weeks ago and I can confirm - YES, you absolutely get back pay! The NYS Department of Labor paid me retroactively for all 7 weeks I was waiting. It showed up as individual payments for each week in my payment history. The total came to about $3,200 which was a huge relief since I was basically living off credit cards during the wait. One thing I noticed though - make sure you log into your account and look for any weeks that need certification. I had to go back and certify for 3 of the weeks manually, the other 4 were done automatically. If you don't see the back payments within 2 weeks of approval, definitely call them. The system isn't perfect but they are legally required to pay you from your original filing date once approved.

I just went through this same nightmare! Filed my claim 8 weeks ago and it was stuck in adjudication hell because my former employer kept "forgetting" to respond to NYS Department of Labor requests. Finally got approved 3 weeks ago and I'm happy to report - YES you get full back pay! I received every penny I was owed from my original filing date. The back payments showed up in multiple deposits over about 10 days, totaling just over $4,000. Here's what I learned: 1) The back pay is automatic once approved, but double-check your payment history, 2) You may need to certify for some past weeks manually - look for a "Claim Weekly Benefits" section that might show previous weeks, 3) If anything looks wrong or missing after 2 weeks, call immediately. The waiting is absolutely brutal when you're broke, but hang in there - the system does work eventually and you WILL get your money. Don't let them steal what you're legally entitled to!

I'm going through almost the exact same situation right now! Filed my claim 5 weeks ago and it's been stuck in adjudication because of some documentation issues with my previous employer. Reading all these success stories is giving me so much hope - I was starting to think I'd just lose all that money. It sounds like the back pay is pretty standard once you get approved, which is a huge relief. I'm bookmarking this thread because everyone's advice about checking for manual certification weeks and following up if payments don't show up is super valuable. The stress of waiting while bills pile up is unreal, but at least now I know there's light at the end of the tunnel. Thanks everyone for sharing your experiences!

I'm currently dealing with this exact situation too - my claim has been in adjudication for 4 weeks now due to some issue with wage verification from my previous job. Reading all these responses is honestly such a huge relief because I was starting to panic that I'd just lose all that money forever. It's really reassuring to hear from so many people who actually got their full back pay once their claims were approved. The waiting is absolutely killing me financially, but knowing that the retroactive benefits are standard practice gives me hope to keep hanging in there. I'm definitely going to save all the advice about checking for manual certification weeks and following up if payments don't appear within 2 weeks. Thanks to everyone who shared their experiences - this thread is probably going to help so many people in similar situations!

I'm in week 3 of waiting for my claim to get through adjudication and this thread is honestly saving my sanity right now! The not knowing whether I'll get that back pay has been keeping me up at night, especially since I'm already behind on rent. Reading all these success stories where people got their full retroactive benefits is giving me so much hope. It's crazy how consistent everyone's experience seems to be - even though the wait is brutal, it sounds like NYS Department of Labor does eventually come through with the money you're owed from day one. I'm screenshotting all the advice about checking for manual certification weeks and following up if payments don't show up. Thank you all for taking the time to share your experiences - knowing I'm not alone in this mess and that there's actually a good chance I'll get my back pay is helping me stay strong through this financial nightmare!

I'm currently in week 2 of waiting for my adjudication to complete and honestly this thread is like finding gold! I was getting so stressed thinking I might lose those first couple weeks of benefits while my claim was stuck. Reading everyone's experiences here is such a relief - it sounds like getting back pay is actually the norm, not the exception. The fact that so many people got their full retroactive benefits from their original filing date gives me real hope. I'm definitely going to bookmark this thread and follow all the advice about checking for manual certification weeks and keeping track of payment dates. It's amazing how much better I feel just knowing other people went through this exact same situation and came out okay on the other side. Thanks everyone for sharing - this community is a lifesaver during such a stressful time!

I'm currently going through this same situation - my claim has been stuck in adjudication for about 3 weeks now due to some verification issues with my previous employer. Reading through all these experiences is honestly such a huge relief! I was really starting to worry that those first few weeks would just be lost money, especially since I'm already struggling to cover basic expenses. It's so reassuring to see that literally everyone who shared their story here ended up getting their full back pay from their original filing date. The consistency is really encouraging - it seems like once NYS Department of Labor approves your claim, the retroactive benefits are pretty much automatic. I'm definitely going to keep checking my account once I get approved and make sure to look for those manual certification weeks that some people mentioned. Thanks to everyone who took the time to share their experiences - knowing that this back pay is standard practice and not just wishful thinking is helping me stay patient through this frustrating process!