Filed for appeal in NY unemployment system 6 weeks ago but still no response - what's the typical wait time?

Ugh same boat. I filed an appeal in September (the 5th I think) after they said I was supposedly overpaid by $3,400. Still waiting for ANY update whatsoever. The anxiety is killing me every day not knowing if they're going to try to take money I don't have. The entire ny unemployment system is designed to frustrate us into giving up.

After waiting on hold forever I finally got someone on the phone using Claimyr.com. Basically paid a service to wait on hold for me then connect me when an agent picked up. Got a real answer about my appeal - they told me appeals are taking 10-14 weeks right now because of backlog. At least I know what to expect now. My hearing is finally scheduled for next week after waiting 11 weeks total. Talking to an agent got things moving for me and was absolutely worth it after months of silence from them.

My appeal took exactly 13 weeks from filing to getting a hearing date. Tried calling every number imaginable, sent emails, even contacted my state representative. Nothing worked until suddenly I got a letter in the mail with my hearing date. The whole system is broken beyond belief.

I filed an appeal back in JULY and just got my hearing scheduled for next week. That's over 16 weeks of waiting. NY unemployment is an absolute joke. When I finally got someone on the phone they told me they're "extremely backlogged" and that my appeal wasn't even assigned to a judge until last month. Prepare for a long wait and document EVERYTHING.

I'm actually an employment attorney in NY and can tell you the appeal system is completely overwhelmed right now. My clients are waiting 12-16 weeks minimum for hearing dates. The dept keeps losing paperwork too. Make sure you have copies of EVERYTHING you send them. If possible, fax documents instead of uploading - they seem to process those faster for some reason.

Pro tip from someone who finally got through their appeal: Document EVERYTHING. Every call, every letter, every online message. When you call, get agent ID numbers. Take screenshots of your online account. At my hearing, the judge was actually impressed that I had better records than the department did! They decided in my favor partly because the unemployment office couldn't prove they had sent me certain notices they claimed they had.

Look I'm not trying to be negative but here's what happened to me: waited 14 weeks for appeal hearing. Hearing lasted 10 minutes. Judge barely let me talk. Denied. Had to appeal THAT decision which took another 8 weeks. Finally won but took 6 MORE weeks to get my money. This system is DESIGNED to make u give up. Don't.

The absolute fastest way to get movement on your appeal is calling and speaking to an actual human. I wasted 4 months trying their online system and getting nowhere. Finally tried claimyr.com after seeing it recommended here, and they got me connected to an agent who escalated my case. Hearing scheduled within 10 days after that call. Sometimes you just need to get past the automated systems and talk to a real person who can help.

i found out my appeal letter was sent to my OLD address even tho i updated my info online 😡 i only discovered this when i called for the 500th time. so defintely CALL to make sure they have your current info correct. ny unemployment is living in the stone age with their systems.

Ok heres what worked for me after waiting 11 weeks with no movement: Contact your STATE REPRESENTATIVE!!! They have special liaisons who work directly with unemployment office. My rep's office got my appeal scheduled within 2 weeks after I contacted them. Don't wait like I did!!

I work for a different state agency (not unemployment) and wanted to share some insider perspective. The appeals unit is MASSIVELY understaffed right now. They lost a ton of experienced staff post-covid and the training for new judges takes months. They're literally years behind. My suggestion is to call using a service like claimyr.com (my cousin used it) to get a human on the phone who can check if your appeal was actually received and properly logged. Sometimes they get lost in the system.

Here's my full timeline for those curious: - Denied benefits June 8 - Filed appeal June 12 - Received acknowledgment letter July 20 (already over a month wait) - Called weekly from July-September (useless) - Used claimyr.com to finally get someone on phone Sept 10 - Agent escalated my case after I explained hardship - Hearing scheduled Sept 28 - Hearing held Oct 15 - Won appeal Oct 22 - Backpay received Nov 3 Total time: almost 5 months from denial to resolution. Ridiculous but at least I won.

Hot take: the appeals system is INTENTIONALLY slow. Think about it - the longer they delay hearings, the more people give up, the less money the state has to pay out. I've been through the process twice (won both times) and the delays are not an accident. They're a feature not a bug. 🤡

y'all talking about weeks... i waited SEVEN MONTHS for my appeal hearing 😭 kept calling every week until i found claimyr.com that got me to an actual human who fixed everything in ONE CALL. some agent had put a random fraud flag on my account for no reason and it was just sitting there all that time. talking to a real person was the only thing that worked.

Everyone's talking about how to speed up getting a hearing date but here's what to do AFTER you get one: 1) Be insanely prepared with ALL documents 2) Practice explaining your case briefly (judges hate rambling) 3) Answer only what's asked - don't volunteer extra info 4) Be respectful even if judge seems hostile 5) If employer doesn't show up (common), don't get cocky - still present your case clearly 6) If you lose, immediately file appeal to next level Took me 3 months to get hearing but won because I was more prepared than employer.

something no one mentions: don't ignore the regular weekly certifications while waiting for appeal!!! keep doing them even if you're not getting paid. if you win the appeal and haven't been certifying, you can lose all that backpay! learned this the hard way 💸