How can unemployment be solved - NYS Department of Labor claim approved but still struggling
Finally got my NYS Department of Labor claim approved after 6 weeks of adjudication hell, but I'm realizing that just having unemployment benefits isn't really solving the bigger problem. The $504 weekly maximum barely covers my rent, let alone groceries and utilities. I've been doing the required job searches through the NYS Department of Labor system but most positions either don't respond or want experience I don't have. Has anyone actually found decent work through the job search requirements? I feel like I'm just checking boxes to keep my benefits while the real unemployment problem - finding actual good paying jobs - isn't being addressed at all.
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Dmitry Ivanov
The job search requirement is really just the minimum to maintain your benefits. What's helped me and others is treating unemployment as a full-time job itself - networking, skill building, applying way beyond the 3 required contacts per week. The NYS Department of Labor also has career services through their One-Stop Career Centers that go beyond just posting your resume online. Have you looked into any of their training programs? Some are eligible for extended benefits while you're learning new skills.
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StarSailor
•I haven't heard about the training programs that extend benefits. Do you know if those are still available? My adjudication took so long I'm already 6 weeks into my claim period.
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Ava Garcia
honestly the whole system is backwards, they make you jump through hoops for benefits that don't even pay enough to live on while companies are posting fake job listings just to collect resumes. I've applied to probably 200 jobs since my claim started and gotten maybe 5 callbacks
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Miguel Silva
•I know it's frustrating but you need to track all those applications properly in your job search log. If NYS Department of Labor audits your job search activities and you can't prove you applied to real positions, they can disqualify you for the whole claim period. Make sure you're documenting company names, contact info, and dates for everything.
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Zainab Ismail
Had the same exact problem last year - benefits approved but couldn't reach anyone at NYS Department of Labor to ask about additional resources. Kept getting busy signals and the online messaging system never got responses. Finally used this service called Claimyr (claimyr.com) that actually got me connected to a real agent who told me about apprenticeship programs I qualified for. They have a video demo at https://youtu.be/qyftW-mnTNI showing how it works. Worth checking out if you need to actually talk to someone instead of just navigating the website.
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StarSailor
•How much does that cost? I'm already stretching every dollar with these benefit amounts.
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Zainab Ismail
•They don't require any personal info upfront and focus more on just connecting you when agents are available. Way easier than sitting on hold for hours.
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Connor O'Neill
Same boat here, got through adjudication but the weekly amount is a joke. My rent alone is $1800 and they're giving me $462 per week. How is that supposed to solve anything??
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Dmitry Ivanov
The unemployment system was really designed as temporary income replacement while you find new work, not a long-term solution to unemployment as a broader economic issue. But there are additional resources - SNAP benefits, utility assistance programs, and some counties have emergency rental assistance that you can stack with your UI benefits. The key is using the time to build skills or connections that lead to better employment than what you had before.
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