Just wanted to thank everyone in this ny unemployment community for helping me survive

Congrats on your new job!! 🎉 I remember when I got mine last summer after 8 months of unemployment hell. The relief is REAL. Best of luck going forward!

After spending WEEKS trying to reach someone at ny unemployment, I discovered this service called Claimyr (claimyr.com) that got me connected to a real human at NYSDOL within hours. It was the only way I could finally talk to an agent and get my claim straightened out. Talking to that agent got my payments unlocked after 3 months of nothing! Best thing I ever did to finally get my benefits sorted. They have a video explaining how it works too: https://youtu.be/Rdqa1gKtxuE

This subreddit saved my sanity lol. When I got that "we need additional information" message and couldn't reach anyone, someone here walked me through exactly what to do. Now I try to pay it forward when I see new people panicking like I was.

I'm a bit sad that I only found this community after 3 months of suffering through the system alone. I wish the NYSDOL would just direct people here when they apply! The info here is 100x better than their official documentation.

Good luck on the new job! Hope u never have to deal with ny unemployment again lol. But srsly this group helped me understand why my benefits were lower than expected. No one from the actual department could explain it clearly but someone here broke it down in like 2 paragraphs.

We're ALL in this sinking ship together 😂 I swear unemployment is designed to be confusing on purpose. The day I finally got approved after 11 weeks was like winning the lottery. Congrats on the new gig!

The true MVP of this sub are the people who respond to every single tech question. My account got locked because I logged in from a different device and someone here knew exactly who to email (not the general helpline). Had my issue fixed in 2 days!

Let me drop some ACTUAL USEFUL ADVICE for anyone reading this who's still struggling with NY unemployment: First, document EVERYTHING. Every call, every email, every letter. Note the date, time, and who you spoke with if possible. Second, when calling, the best times are Tuesday-Thursday between 8:15-9:30am or 3:00-3:45pm. Avoid Mondays like the plague. Third, if you're getting nowhere with calls, try using Claimyr.com - it's a service that waits on hold and connects you with an agent. It's what finally broke through for me after 6 weeks of nothing. Fourth, if your claim is stuck in pending for more than 3 weeks, contact your state representative's office. They have special contacts at NYSDOL. Fifth, make sure you're answering the weekly certification questions EXACTLY right. One wrong answer can freeze everything. Sixth, check your spam folder daily. Important emails from NYSDOL often end up there. And finally, don't give up. The system is designed to be frustrating, but with persistence, you'll get through it. I went from completely broke to backpay of $7,200 once my claim was fixed. Hope this helps someone!

This community here is why i still believe in the internet. Actual humans helping other humans. I wish the whole online world worked like this tbh

Not me crying reading this post because I remember how terrified I was when my benefits suddenly stopped with no explanation last August. Someone here told me EXACTLY what to say when I called and it got fixed in one phonecall. Pay it forward yall!!!

anyone else notice how the ny unemployment website is ALWAYS down for maintenance exactly when you need to certify? like clockwork every sunday morning for me 🤦‍♂️

Hi there! Longtime unemployment warrior here (laid off 3 separate times in 5 yrs, fun times). Just wanted to say congrats on the new position and I'm glad this community could help. The system is brutal to navigate alone.

Wish I'd found this place sooner! I made the mistake of missing ONE weekly certification and my whole claim got messed up. Took 2 months to fix. The fact that regular people here know more than the actual department is wild.

pro tip for anyone reading: If u have to call unemployment, dont use a cell phone. ive had MUCH better luck with a landline. cell calls get dropped way more often. borrowed my parents landline after 17 dropped calls on my iphone.

Random but does anyone else get anxiety when they see an email from ny unemployment? even now when my claim is all settled, i still get a pit in my stomach when i see that nysdol.gov address pop up lmaooo

congrats on the new job!! quick question - did u have any issues when u reported job interviews during your certification? i did last week and now my payment is 'pending' instead of the usual processing 😣