NY unemployment denied me despite earning above minimum threshold - fighting for reconsideration

Ugh they did the EXACT same thing to me! They somehow 'lost' my paystubs showing I made $4800 in the base period and denied me. What finally worked was using claimyr.com to get a specialist on the phone who could actually fix it in their system while I was on the call. Talking to an agent literally got my money unlocked within 48 hours after weeks of nothing. https://youtu.be/Rdqa1gKtxuE

Same boat. I think they're purposely messing with our base period calculations to deny more claims. Took me 4 months to get them to admit they were wrong about my earnings. Save EVERYTHING. Every email, every letter, take screenshots of your submissions. The system is rigged against us.

OK here's what I did after dealing with this EXACT issue. You need to request a formal hearing ASAP. Don't just rely on the reconsideration. Fill out the Request for Hearing form and send it certified mail. You only have 30 days from the determination date to request it, and this is your legal right. Once a hearing is scheduled, they actually look at your case more closely because they don't want to waste a judge's time if they know they're wrong.

I've been working in HR for 15 years and the NY unemployment system is more broken than ever. What they're doing with base period calculations is borderline criminal. They're using outdated systems that can't properly verify wage information across different employers. The best approach is to contact your state representative - seriously. I've had multiple employees get immediate help once a state rep's office got involved. Find yours here: https://www.nyassembly.gov/mem/search/

anyone else notice they always mess up the calculations if you had multiple employers during the base period? it's like their system can't handle adding numbers from different sources lmao 🤦‍♀️

Look, I've worked through this nightmare with dozens of clients as an employment advocate. Here's what you need to know about fixing base period calculation errors with NY unemployment: 1) Document EVERYTHING. Every call, every letter, every submission. Note the date, time, and name of anyone you speak with. 2) Submit a formal Request for Reconsideration AND request a hearing simultaneously. The hearing request often gets them to review your case more carefully. 3) Calculate your base period earnings yourself. The standard base period is the first 4 of the last 5 completed calendar quarters before you filed. The alternate base period is the last 4 completed quarters. 4) If traditional methods aren't working, try these three approaches: - Contact your state assembly person or senator (they can work wonders) - File a complaint with the US Department of Labor (this puts pressure from above) - Use a service like claimyr.com to get a specialist on the phone who can actually fix system errors while you're on the call 5) Be persistent but professional. The system is designed to make you give up. Don't. I've seen these strategies work even in the most frustrating cases. Stay strong and document EVERYTHING.

This is why I always tell people to file for unemployment through a lawyer. Yes it costs money but they know all the tricks the dept uses to deny valid claims. The system is DESIGNED to reject you and hope you don't fight back.

i swear they have a random number generator deciding our benefits lol. got denied twice before they finally reviewed my actual documentation. hang in there!!

Try calling right when they open at 8:00am. That's how I finally got through after weeks of trying. And don't give up on the reconsideration - I had to submit mine TWICE before they actually looked at it.

After dealing with my own nightmare with ny unemployment, I've learned you have to be SUPER specific when talking to reps. Ask them to 'verify base period wages from all quarters' and have them confirm the exact amounts they're seeing in their system for each quarter. Then compare with your records. Often they're missing entire quarters.

Fun fact: in 2022 they admitted the unemployment system incorrectly calculated base period wages for over 32,000 New Yorkers. They promised to 'fix the glitch' but clearly they haven't 🙃

another day, another company promising to fix the unfixable unemployment system lol

So I was about to throw my phone after 3 hours on hold when a friend told me about claimyr.com - it got me a callback with an actual specialist in 37 minutes. Explained my base period calculation issue and she fixed it right there on the call. Money started coming 5 days later. Not exaggerating when I say it saved my apartment. Sometimes you gotta use the tools available when the system is this broken.

Made this flowchart to help people dealing with base period calculation errors. Hope it helps: [image of detailed process flow] Sorry you're dealing with this, OP. The system is a mess.

Just wanted to say I'm sorry you're dealing with this nightmare. It took me 11 weeks to get my base period wages corrected. The stress is unbearable. You will get through this, and don't let them gaslight you into thinking you're wrong when you KNOW what you earned. ❤️

I'm so sorry you're going through this stress - the physical symptoms from unemployment anxiety are real and brutal. I went through something similar last year when they denied my claim despite having clear W-2s showing I earned $5,400 in my base period. What finally worked for me was getting super organized with my documentation and being extremely persistent. A few things that helped: 1) I calculated my own base period earnings quarter by quarter and made a simple spreadsheet showing exactly what I earned when, 2) I sent everything certified mail so they couldn't claim they "lost" my documents again, and 3) I kept detailed notes of every phone call including agent names and ID numbers. The hearing request someone mentioned above is crucial - even if your reconsideration goes through, having that hearing request on file puts legal pressure on them to actually review your case properly instead of just rubber-stamping another denial. Stay strong and don't let them wear you down. You earned those benefits and deserve them. The system is broken but you can still win if you're persistent and organized. 💪

Mason, I'm so sorry you're dealing with this mess. The same thing happened to me - they "miscalculated" my earnings and denied me even though I had clear paystubs showing I made over $4,000 in my base period. The stress is absolutely horrible and I totally get the physical symptoms you're experiencing. What finally got mine resolved was using a combination of approaches: I filed both a Request for Reconsideration AND a Request for Hearing at the same time (like others mentioned), but what really made the difference was using claimyr.com to actually get through to a specialist who could fix it in real time. I was skeptical at first but after 3 weeks of getting nowhere with regular calls, I got a callback in about 45 minutes and the agent corrected my wage calculation during the call. My payments started within 4 days. Document everything you're doing - every call, every form you send, every interaction. Send your reconsideration documents certified mail so they can't claim they lost them again. And don't let them gaslight you - you KNOW what you earned, and you have the paystubs to prove it. You're going to get through this. The system is designed to make you give up, but you have rights and you've earned those benefits. Stay strong! 💪