What is the phone number for unemployment NYS Department of Labor claims?
I need to call about my unemployment claim but I can't find the right phone number anywhere on their website. Every time I search it gives me different numbers and when I call them they either don't work or put me on hold forever. Does anyone know the actual current phone number for NYS Department of Labor unemployment claims? I've been trying to get through for days about my weekly claim certification.
11 comments
Join the conversation
Beatrice Marshall
The main NYS Department of Labor unemployment phone number is 888-209-8124. But honestly good luck getting through - I've been calling for weeks about my adjudication and the lines are always busy. They usually open at 8am so try calling right when they open.
0 coins
Mae Bennett
•Thanks! I'll try calling first thing tomorrow morning. How long were you on hold when you finally got through?
0 coins
Melina Haruko
ugh the phone system is so broken. i called 50 times yesterday and kept getting disconnected
0 coins
Dallas Villalobos
There are actually different numbers depending on what you need help with. 888-209-8124 is for general unemployment claims, but if you need to speak about job search requirements or standby status, sometimes the Workforce One centers have separate lines. What specifically do you need to discuss about your claim?
0 coins
Mae Bennett
•I just need to ask about my weekly certification - it's showing as incomplete but I submitted it on Sunday like always.
0 coins
Reina Salazar
I was having the same problem trying to reach someone about my claim status. After getting hung up on dozens of times, someone told me about this service called Claimyr at claimyr.com - they actually get you connected to a real NYS Department of Labor agent without all the busy signals and waiting. There's a video demo at https://youtu.be/qyftW-mnTNI that shows how it works. Honestly saved me hours of frustration.
0 coins
Saanvi Krishnaswami
•How much does something like that cost? Seems too good to be true if the regular phone lines are so backed up.
0 coins
Reina Salazar
•It's worth checking out their site for details. For me it was totally worth it just to actually talk to someone instead of getting disconnected constantly.
0 coins
Demi Lagos
The phone system is ridiculous. I've called probably 200 times over the past month trying to get my disqualification explained and I've gotten through TWICE. Both times they told me different things about my appeal process. The whole NYS Department of Labor phone system needs to be completely overhauled.
0 coins
Felix Grigori
I feel your pain! I've been dealing with the same issue trying to reach them about my benefit calculation. What worked for me was calling exactly at 8:00 AM on Tuesday - seems like they have more staff available earlier in the week. Also, I noticed that if you select the option for "reporting fraud" (even though that's not what you need), you sometimes get through to a real person faster who can then transfer you to the right department. It's frustrating that we have to use these workarounds just to get basic help with our claims.
0 coins
Abby Marshall
•That's a smart tip about calling at 8 AM on Tuesday! I never thought about trying different days of the week. The fraud option workaround is clever too - it's sad that we have to game the system just to get help. I'm going to try your Tuesday morning strategy next week. Did you actually get your benefit calculation issue resolved when you finally got through?
0 coins