NY unemployment appeal hearing delay - filed in October with no response yet

The appeals backlog at NYSDOL is ridiculous right now. I filed my appeal in September and didn't get my hearing scheduled until mid-December - more than 3 months of waiting! And that was after calling them repeatedly. The ALJ (Administrative Law Judge) told me during my hearing that they're severely understaffed and processing appeals from months ago. Your best bet is to keep trying to reach someone on the phone to check your status.

yep waited 10 weeks for mine last summer. system is broken. they dont care about us at all!!

Current timeline for NY unemployment appeals is approximately 10-14 weeks according to what I've been seeing with my clients. The process is: 1. File the appeal request 2. Receive acknowledgment letter (usually 2-3 weeks after filing) 3. Hearing notice arrives (typically 8-12 weeks after filing) 4. Actual hearing date (usually scheduled 2-3 weeks after the notice) Since you filed in early October and it's now December, you're still within their current processing timeline. I would recommend calling the Appeals Board directly at 518-402-0205 rather than the general unemployment number. They can at least confirm they have your appeal on file.

My appeal took 11 weeks before I got the hearing notice in the mail! I was freaking out too, but apparently this is "normal" for NY unemployment. The most frustrating part was trying to get anyone on the phone to confirm they even had my appeal. I spent HOURS listening to that awful hold music only to be disconnected.

After spending over two weeks trying to reach NYSDOL about my appeal status and getting nowhere, I finally tried Claimyr (claimyr.com) and actually got through to a live person at unemployment in under 20 minutes. They were able to confirm my appeal was in the system and gave me an estimated timeframe. Saved me so much stress and wasted time. They have a video showing how it works: https://youtu.be/Rdqa1gKtxuE - definitely worth it when you're dealing with something as important as an appeal hearing.

Wait, am I supposed to get some kind of acknowledgment after filing an appeal? I filed mine online through my NY.gov account about 4 weeks ago and haven't received anything at all. Now I'm worried they didn't get it! Does anyone know if they send confirmation emails or letters automatically?

anyone else notice they seem to schedule these hearings at the most inconvenient times possible?? mine was at 8:30am on a monday. like they WANT you to miss it

Make sure you're preparing for your hearing while you wait! I wasn't ready when mine finally came and it didn't go well. Gather ALL your documentation, especially any proof that contradicts why they denied you. If you were denied for misconduct, get statements from coworkers. If it was about availability for work, have your job search records ready. Don't just wait - use this time to build your case!

i waited almost 4 months for my hearing last year. the whole system is a mess. when i finally got my hearing the judge was actually pretty fair tho. won my appeal. hang in there

One important thing to note: Once you do get your hearing scheduled, make absolutely sure you attend it! If you miss the hearing, it's extremely difficult to get it rescheduled and your appeal will likely be dismissed. They usually give you very little notice too - sometimes just a week or so. Make sure your address is up to date in the system and check your mail daily.