How to successfully appeal unemployment denial - NYS Department of Labor rejected my claim
My NYS Department of Labor claim was denied last week after being in adjudication for over a month. They said I was terminated for misconduct but that's completely false - I was let go due to budget cuts along with 6 other people. I have documentation proving this but apparently they didn't consider it during the initial review. Has anyone here successfully appealed a denial? What evidence should I gather and how long does the appeal process take? I'm really stressed about this because I need these benefits to survive while job hunting.
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Madeline Blaze
Yes, you absolutely can appeal this! You have 30 days from the date of the denial letter to file your appeal with NYS Department of Labor. Gather all documentation from your employer about the layoffs, any emails or notices about budget cuts, and witness statements from coworkers who were also laid off. The appeal hearing will be conducted by phone usually within 4-6 weeks. Make sure to request all relevant documents from your employer through the discovery process.
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Tyler Lefleur
•Thank you! Do I file the appeal online through my.ny.gov or do I need to mail something in? And should I keep filing weekly claims while the appeal is processing?
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Madeline Blaze
•You can file online through your my.ny.gov account - there should be an appeal option in your claim details. And yes, definitely keep filing your weekly claims even though you're not getting paid yet. If you win the appeal, they'll backpay all those weeks.
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Max Knight
I went through this exact same thing 6 months ago. NYS Department of Labor initially denied my claim saying I quit voluntarily but I was actually forced to resign due to harassment. The key is being super organized with your evidence and having a clear timeline of events. During the hearing, stick to facts only and don't get emotional. I won my appeal and got 12 weeks of backpay. The whole process took about 8 weeks from filing to decision.
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Emma Swift
•How did you present your evidence during the phone hearing? Did you have to mail documents beforehand?
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Isabella Tucker
man the nys department of labor appeal process is so slow and frustrating!! took them forever to even schedule my hearing and then the judge seemed like they already made up their mind. still waiting for my decision after 3 weeks since the hearing. good luck with yours but dont get your hopes up too much
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Jayden Hill
If you're having trouble getting through to NYS Department of Labor to check on your appeal status or ask questions about the process, I had success using claimyr.com - they have this service that calls NYS Department of Labor for you and gets you connected to an actual agent. There's a video demo at https://youtu.be/qyftW-mnTNI that shows how it works. Was really helpful when I needed to clarify some documentation requirements for my appeal last year.
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Tyler Lefleur
•Interesting, I've been trying to call for days but keep getting the busy signal or getting disconnected. How does that service work exactly?
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LordCommander
Wait I'm confused - if they denied your claim for misconduct but you were laid off, doesn't that mean your employer lied to NYS Department of Labor about why you were terminated? Can you sue them for that or report them somewhere?
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Madeline Blaze
•Employers sometimes contest claims even for legitimate layoffs to keep their unemployment tax rates low. That's why the appeal process exists - to sort out these disputes with proper evidence and testimony.
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Lucy Lam
Just wanted to say hang in there! I know how stressful this is when you're counting on those benefits. The appeal process gave me so much anxiety but it worked out in the end.
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Malik Thompson
I'm dealing with a similar situation right now - my claim was also denied for "misconduct" when I was actually part of company-wide layoffs. It's so frustrating when you know the employer gave false information. I've been gathering all my documentation including the WARN notice our company filed and emails about the restructuring. One thing I learned is to also request your personnel file from HR if you haven't already - sometimes there are notes or memos in there that can help prove it was a layoff and not misconduct. The 30-day deadline to appeal is really important so don't wait. I'm still in the process but my lawyer friend told me that wrongful denial cases like ours have pretty good success rates at appeal hearings.
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NebulaNinja
•That's really helpful advice about requesting the personnel file! I didn't think about that but you're right - there might be internal documentation that proves it was a layoff. Did you have to pay anything to get your personnel file or did they provide it for free? Also wondering if the WARN notice carries a lot of weight in these hearings since it's an official government filing. Thanks for sharing your experience - it's reassuring to know others are going through the same thing and that the success rates are decent for cases like ours.
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AaliyahAli
•@Malik Thompson Most employers have to provide your personnel file for free within a reasonable time usually (30 days -) it s'actually required by NY labor law. The WARN notice is definitely strong evidence since it s'a federal requirement for mass layoffs and proves the company was planning workforce reductions. I d'also suggest getting statements from your coworkers who were laid off at the same time - having multiple people confirm it was part of budget cuts really strengthens your case. Document everything with dates and keep copies of all correspondence. The fact that 6 other people were let go with you should make this a pretty straightforward appeal once you get all the evidence together.
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