NY unemployment denied me wrongly - fought back and WON my benefits!
Just want to share my recent experience with NY unemployment because it might help someone else! Three weeks ago I got this ridiculous denial letter saying I didn't qualify for benefits because I supposedly had no earnings after January 15, 2025. COMPLETELY WRONG! I've been working steadily until my layoff in March. Of course they included all this intimidating appeal paperwork with deadlines and hearing requests. But instead of going through their complicated appeal process, I decided to just file a new claim altogether. The first agent I spoke with was USELESS! She actually had the nerve to tell me "the system doesn't recognize everything" when I explained the earnings issue. Like seriously lady? 🙄 I called back and immediately asked for a level 2 specialist. This guy promised he'd remove my first claim since having two in the system was causing problems. Guess what? He never did it! Finally called a THIRD time and requested a level 3 specialist. She was actually helpful and apologetic. I told her about the denial letter and she advised me NOT to appeal because she could fix everything right then and there. Just got another letter yesterday confirming I'm eligible with a weekly benefit amount of $421! So don't just accept when they say you're not eligible if you KNOW their information is wrong! Fight back! There are competent people there, you just have to get to them.
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Isabella Costa
congrats! the same thing happened to my cousin last month. sometimes you just gotta keep calling till you get someone who actually knows what theyre doing
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Hiroshi Nakamura
•Thanks! Yeah, it was so frustrating. The first two agents clearly had no idea what they were doing. Makes me wonder how many people just give up and don't get the benefits they deserve.
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Malik Jenkins
This is actually quite common with NY unemployment right now. Their system update in December 2024 has been causing these false denial issues. The problem is their new software doesn't properly import all wage data from certain employers, especially if you worked for multiple employers or had any gig work. Asking for a Level 3 specialist was exactly the right move. They have access to override the automated denials. What I recommend to anyone facing this issue: 1. Don't appeal right away 2. Call and specifically request a Level 3 specialist 3. Have your wage documentation ready (W2s, paystubs, etc.) 4. Be polite but persistent The good news is that once it's fixed, they'll usually process back payments within 2-3 business days.
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Freya Andersen
•Is there a specific phone number to reach these Level 3 specialists directly? I've been trying for days and can never get past the automated system.
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Eduardo Silva
I went through the EXACT SAME THING last week!!!!! The system said I had "insufficient wages" even though I worked at the same job for THREE YEARS before being laid off in February. The first person I talked to kept telling me to appeal appeal appeal. Such a waste of time!!! I called back 5 TIMES before getting someone who actually looked at my record and fixed it. They have no idea what they're doing there half the time I swear!!! My denial letter said I earned $0 in the last quarter which was COMPLETELY FALSE. Did they backdate your payments? I'm still waiting for mine...
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Hiroshi Nakamura
•Yes, they did backdate my payments to when I first applied! The level 3 specialist told me I should see the money within 3-5 business days. Hope you get yours soon!
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Leila Haddad
After reading all these comments, I'm worried. I just got a denial letter today saying "insufficient work history" even though I worked at the same place for 6 years! Should I file a new claim like you did or try to appeal?
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Malik Jenkins
•Based on what you're describing, this sounds like the same system error. I'd recommend calling and asking for a Level 3 specialist rather than going through the appeal process. Appeals can take 6-8 weeks to resolve, while a phone correction can fix it in minutes if you get the right person.
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Leila Haddad
•Thank you. I'm so nervous about this. I have rent due next week and really needed that unemployment money to come through. Do you know how long it usually takes to get the first payment after they fix the issue??
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Malik Jenkins
•Once a Level 3 specialist corrects it in the system, typically 3-5 business days for the payment to process. Make sure to keep certifying every week even while the issue is being resolved.
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Emma Johnson
I've been trying to call NY unemployment for days but can never get through. Always get the "high call volume" message and then it hangs up! How did you actually get to speak to someone? I'm dealing with the same wrong denial issue and getting desperate.
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Ravi Patel
•I had the same problem and finally found a service called Claimyr that got me through to an agent in about 20 minutes instead of spending days trying. It basically keeps dialing and navigating the phone tree for you until it gets through, then calls you to connect with the agent. Saved me so much stress. Check out their demo: https://youtu.be/Rdqa1gKtxuE - you can see how it works on their site claimyr.com too. Totally worth it for getting through and fixing denial issues like this.
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Freya Andersen
I work as a career counselor and have been seeing this issue with multiple clients recently. The NY unemployment system seems to have a specific glitch with earnings verification right now. One important tip I haven't seen mentioned: if you uploaded any earnings documents through the online portal between December 2024 and February 2025, there's a good chance they never got properly attached to your claim due to a known system issue. Always bring up specifically whether they can see your document uploads when speaking with a representative. And yes, Level 3 specialists have much more system access than regular agents.
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Hiroshi Nakamura
•That explains it! I did upload all my paystubs through the portal in January when I first applied. The Level 3 specialist actually mentioned she couldn't see those files.
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Isabella Costa
wait how do you even know what level agent your talking to? ive called like a million times and nobody ever tells me what level they are lol
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Malik Jenkins
•You have to specifically ask for a higher level specialist. The regular agents who first answer calls are Level 1. If you ask for a supervisor or specialist, you'll get Level 2. To get Level 3, you need to specifically say something like "I need to speak with a Level 3 specialist who has authorization to make account corrections." They won't volunteer this information unless you ask.
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Astrid Bergström
The NY unemployment system is such a joke right now. They denied me twice and I had to appeal both times. During my hearing I found out they had my social security number wrong by ONE DIGIT which caused all my wage verification to fail. What's crazy is nobody caught this over THREE PHONE CALLS before my hearing!!! They fixed it eventually but I went 7 weeks without benefits because of their mistake. I almost got evicted waiting for them to fix it. The system is DESIGNED to make people give up.
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Eduardo Silva
•THIS!!! My cousin had the exact same thing happen - one digit wrong on her SSN and suddenly the system acted like she never worked a day in her life! It's so frustrating and it really DOES feel like they make it complicated on purpose so people will just give up!!
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Hiroshi Nakamura
Update: My back payments just hit my account this morning! Took exactly 4 business days after the Level 3 specialist fixed my claim. Such a relief!
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Leila Haddad
•That's great to hear! I just got through to someone today using that Claimyr service someone mentioned above. They're fixing my claim and said I should see payments by early next week. Keeping my fingers crossed!
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