NYS Department of Labor wage determination - what does this mean for my unemployment claim?
Got a notice from NYS Department of Labor saying they need to do a wage determination for my unemployment claim. This is my first time filing for UI and I have no idea what this means. My claim has been pending for 2 weeks now and I'm starting to worry. Does anyone know what wage determination involves and how long it usually takes? I worked for the same company for 3 years before getting laid off last month.
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Chloe Martin
Wage determination is when NYS Department of Labor verifies your earnings history to calculate your weekly benefit amount. They contact your former employers to confirm wages you earned during your base period (usually the first 4 of the last 5 completed quarters before you filed). It's totally normal and doesn't mean there's a problem with your claim.
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Omar Fawaz
•Oh that's a relief! So they're just making sure I reported my wages correctly? How long does this process usually take?
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Diego Rojas
Yeah wage determination can take anywhere from 1-4 weeks depending on how quickly your employers respond to NYS Department of Labor's requests. If you worked for a big company they usually respond faster than smaller businesses. Just keep filing your weekly claims while you wait.
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Omar Fawaz
•Thanks! I was worried I was doing something wrong. My old company is pretty big so hopefully they respond quickly.
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Anastasia Sokolov
ugh ive been waiting 3 weeks for wage determination and still nothing!! called nys department of labor like 50 times and cant get through to anyone. this is so frustrating when you need money for bills
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StarSeeker
•I had the same problem with getting through to NYS Department of Labor by phone. Someone on here recommended this service called Claimyr that helps you actually reach an agent - check out claimyr.com. They have a video demo at https://youtu.be/qyftW-mnTNI showing how it works. Worked for me when I needed to check on my adjudication status.
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Anastasia Sokolov
•never heard of that but at this point ill try anything. thanks for the tip
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Sean O'Donnell
wage determination took forever for me too but once it went through my benefit amount was higher than I expected! turns out I had overtime pay from 2 years ago that boosted my base period earnings
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Zara Ahmed
The NYS Department of Labor wage determination process is actually pretty straightforward once you understand it. They're calculating your weekly benefit amount based on your highest earning quarter in the base period. If you had any issues with unreported wages or worked for employers who went out of business, that can delay things. But in most cases it's just verification.
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Omar Fawaz
•That makes sense. My employer is still in business and I always got regular W2s so hopefully it goes smoothly. Thanks for explaining!
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Javier Hernandez
I went through wage determination about 6 months ago and it took exactly 2 weeks for me. What helped was that I kept all my pay stubs and had my employment dates ready when I first filed. The NYS Department of Labor will also look at any severance pay you received - that might affect your benefit start date but won't reduce your weekly amount. Just be patient, Omar, since you worked for the same company for 3 years your wage history should be pretty straightforward to verify.
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Astrid Bergström
•That's really helpful to know about the severance pay - I did get a small severance package when I was laid off so good to know that might affect the start date. I kept most of my recent pay stubs but wish I had kept them all now! Do you remember if they asked for any additional documentation during your wage determination process?
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