How long after NYS Department of Labor phone interview will I receive unemployment benefits?
I had my phone interview with NYS Department of Labor last Wednesday about my unemployment claim. The representative said they needed to verify some information about why I left my previous job. She seemed satisfied with my answers and said everything looked good, but didn't give me a timeline for when I'd actually start receiving benefits. My claim status still shows 'adjudication in progress' and I'm getting nervous about how much longer this will take. Does anyone know the typical timeframe after a phone interview before benefits start coming through? I've been waiting almost 5 weeks total now.
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Natasha Volkov
Phone interviews are usually the final step in the adjudication process. In most cases, you should see a decision within 1-2 weeks after the interview if everything checks out. Keep filing your weekly claims even while waiting - if approved, you'll get backpay for those weeks. The fact that the interviewer said things looked good is promising.
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Oliver Schmidt
•Thanks, that's reassuring! I have been continuing to file my weekly claims. Just nerve-wracking when bills are piling up.
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Javier Torres
same situation here but mine took 3 weeks after the phone call before i got approved... the waiting is the worst part
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Emma Wilson
If you're still worried about the timeline, you might want to try calling NYS Department of Labor directly to check on your claim status. I know their phone lines are usually swamped, but I recently discovered this service called Claimyr (claimyr.com) that helps you get through to an actual agent. They have a video demo at https://youtu.be/qyftW-mnTNI showing how it works. I used it last month when my claim was stuck and finally got some real answers about what was happening.
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QuantumLeap
•Interesting, never heard of that before. Did they actually help you reach someone or is it just another way to wait on hold?
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Emma Wilson
•No, they actually got me connected to a live person within a reasonable time. Way better than spending hours hitting redial myself.
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Malik Johnson
The whole phone interview thing is such BS anyway. Like why do they need to interrogate us when we're already stressed about not having income? My interview was supposed to be 15 minutes and turned into 45 minutes of the same questions over and over.
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Natasha Volkov
•I understand the frustration, but the interviews are required by federal law to prevent fraud. They're just doing their job to verify eligibility.
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Isabella Santos
oh wow 5 weeks is crazy long! mine was approved like 3 days after my interview but that was back in march so maybe they're slower now?
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Salim Nasir
I went through this exact same process a few months ago - had my phone interview on a Thursday and got my approval notice the following Tuesday. The interviewer told me the same thing about everything looking good, and fortunately it was! One thing that helped my anxiety during the wait was checking my online account every couple days rather than obsessively refreshing it daily. The status will change from "adjudication in progress" to either "approved" or they'll request more information. Since your interviewer seemed satisfied, I'd say you're in good shape. Hang in there - 5 weeks is definitely on the longer side but not unheard of, especially if they're backed up.
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Dominic Green
•That's really helpful to hear about your timeline - Tuesday after a Thursday interview gives me hope! I've been trying not to check obsessively but it's hard when you're counting every dollar. Good point about checking every couple days instead of constantly refreshing. Did you get any kind of notification when your status changed or did you just happen to catch it when you logged in?
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