How much time do you have to apply for unemployment with NYS Department of Labor?
I was laid off from my restaurant job two weeks ago and haven't filed for unemployment yet because I thought I might get called back quickly. My manager just told me they're closing permanently though. I keep seeing conflicting information online about deadlines for filing. How much time do you actually have to apply for unemployment benefits in New York? Am I already too late since it's been 14 days?
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Emma Bianchi
You're not too late at all! In New York, you can file for unemployment benefits up to one year from your last day of work. However, the sooner you file the better because benefits are only paid from the week you actually apply, not retroactively to when you lost your job. So you've already lost those two weeks of potential benefits by waiting.
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Mia Green
•Oh no, I wish I had known that! So I can't get those two weeks back even though I was unemployed?
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Lucas Kowalski
File ASAP through the NYS Department of Labor website. The one-year deadline is correct, but like the previous poster said, you can't get backdated payments. Also make sure you have all your employment info ready - Social Security number, employer addresses, dates of employment, and reason for separation. The application takes about 30-45 minutes if you have everything prepared.
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Mia Green
•Thanks! Do I need my final pay stub or anything like that to apply?
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Lucas Kowalski
•Having your final pay stub helps but isn't required to start the application. The NYS Department of Labor will verify your wages with your employer directly.
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Olivia Martinez
same thing happened to me when covid hit, waited 3 weeks thinking my job would come back and lost out on like $1200 in benefits. dont make my mistake!
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Charlie Yang
I had trouble getting through to the NYS Department of Labor phone lines when I needed to check on my claim status after filing. If you run into issues reaching them, I found this service called Claimyr that helped me get connected to an actual agent. Check out claimyr.com - they have a video demo at https://youtu.be/qyftW-mnTNI that shows how it works. Really saved me hours of busy signals and dropped calls.
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Grace Patel
•How much does something like that cost? I'm already strapped for cash obviously
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Charlie Yang
•It was worth it for me to avoid the phone nightmare, but honestly most people can get through eventually if they keep trying different times of day. Early morning usually works better.
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ApolloJackson
Restaurant industry has been brutal lately. Make sure when you file that you mention the permanent closure - that should help your claim get processed faster since there's no question about the reason for separation. Also start your job search activities right away because NYS has work search requirements you'll need to meet each week.
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