Need help - NY unemployment waiting week credit issue for Spanish-speaking coworker
I'm trying to help my Spanish-speaking coworker with her NY unemployment claim. When we tried to file, the system told her she needs to call the 8124 number to get a credit for her waiting week before she can file. She doesn't understand English well enough to handle the call herself, and I'm trying to assist her but getting nowhere. We've been trying for 3 days now and can't get through. Does anyone know if there's a Spanish language option when calling? Or any other way to handle this waiting week credit issue without spending hours on hold? This is really frustrating for both of us.
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Angelica Smith
There is definitely a Spanish language option when you call the 8124 number. You just have to wait through the English prompts and eventually it will ask for language preference. But honestly, the wait times are terrible right now (I was on hold for 4+ hours last week). Your coworker should request the waiting week credit as soon as possible since this can delay her payments.
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Sophia Long
•Thanks for confirming the Spanish option exists. That's helpful to know. We've tried calling at different times of day but never get through - it either says all agents are busy or disconnects us. Do you know if there's any specific time that's better to call?
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Logan Greenburg
call first thing in morning!!! thats what i did got thru after only 45 min wait instead of never getting thru. also make sure ur using the right number sometimes people call wrong one
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Sophia Long
•We've been trying at 8:00am when they open but still no luck. And yes, we're definitely calling the right number - it's the one listed on the notice she received.
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Charlotte Jones
I went through something similar helping my mother-in-law who speaks mainly Mandarin. What worked for us was using Claimyr.com - it's a service that basically holds your place in line and calls you back when an agent is available. Saved us SO much time and frustration. They have a video showing how it works here: https://youtu.be/Rdqa1gKtxuE. For us it was worth it because we'd already spent like 10+ hours trying to get through without success.
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Sophia Long
•I've never heard of Claimyr before. Does it actually work? We're getting desperate at this point since her bills are piling up while we wait to even file the claim.
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Charlotte Jones
•Yes, it worked for us. Got connected to an agent in about 2 hours instead of spending days trying to get through. Once you're connected, ask for a Spanish-speaking agent right away. My mother-in-law's issue was resolved in one call after we got through.
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Lucas Bey
OMG the waiting week credit issue is THE WORST!!!! I had this same problem back in January and it took me 3 WEEKS to get through!!! I almost lost my apartment waiting for the benefits to start!! Why don't they have a better system for this??? It's so unfair especially to people who don't speak English as their first language. The whole system is designed to make people give up!!!!
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Harper Thompson
•The system is definitely overloaded right now. For the waiting week credit specifically, they require verbal verification because there were so many fraudulent claims in 2024. It's frustrating but they're trying to protect the system. One tip - if your coworker has documentation from her previous employer with her NY unemployment insurance information, have that ready when you call. It can speed up the process significantly.
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Caleb Stark
my cousin works for nysdol and she says theyre understaffed by like 40% right now thats why nobody can get thru. also i think they have a special spanish line but its not advertised much try asking for it specifically
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Jade O'Malley
•The Spanish line has the same wait times as the regular line in my experience. I spent 2 hours on hold on the Spanish line last month. It's barely any better.
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Harper Thompson
Just to clarify some misinformation in this thread - the waiting week credit is a very specific issue that must be handled by phone. This typically happens when: 1. Someone previously filed a claim that included a waiting week 2. They're filing a new claim within the same benefit year 3. They qualify to have that initial waiting week credited to their new claim For Spanish speakers, when you call 888-209-8124, press 9 for Spanish after the initial greeting. Then follow the appropriate prompts for waiting week credit issues. You might also try calling their Spanish-specific assistance line: 888-662-4886. This sometimes has shorter wait times. Make sure your coworker has: - Their NY.gov ID and password - Social Security Number - Previous claim information - Employment records for the new claim period
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Sophia Long
•Thank you for this detailed explanation! This is exactly her situation - she had a claim last year, received benefits for about 3 months, found work, and now needs to file again. I didn't know there was a dedicated Spanish line. We'll try that number tomorrow morning.
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Jade O'Malley
If you're helping your coworker, make sure you're not actually speaking for her on the call. NYSDOL requires the claimant to speak for themselves (even with language barriers) unless you have filed official paperwork to be their representative. They're very strict about this now after all the fraud cases. Your coworker needs to be the one talking, even if you're helping translate.
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Sophia Long
•I wasn't aware of that requirement. I was planning to do most of the talking and then have her confirm details. Is there an official way to become an authorized helper? She's really nervous about handling this herself even with translation.
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Jade O'Malley
•Yes, there's a form called "Claimant Advocate Designation" you can download from the NY DOL website. You both need to fill it out and submit it before you can legally speak on her behalf. Without that, they might refuse to talk to you or even flag the account for potential fraud.
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Charlotte Jones
Just wanted to update - we finally got our waiting week credit issue resolved. We ended up using Claimyr and got through to an agent within 90 minutes. Once connected, we asked for a Spanish speaker and they transferred us pretty quickly. The actual fix only took about 15 minutes once we had someone on the line. My coworker's claim is now processing normally and she should get her first payment next week.
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Angelica Smith
•That's great news! The waiting week credit issues are usually simple fixes once you actually reach a person. Glad your coworker is on track to receive benefits now.
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