What is unemployment benefits and how does NYS Department of Labor determine eligibility?
I just lost my job last week and everyone keeps telling me to file for unemployment but I honestly have no idea what that even means or how it works. Do I actually get money from the government? How much? What's the process like with NYS Department of Labor? I've never had to deal with this before and feeling pretty overwhelmed about the whole thing. Can someone explain unemployment benefits in simple terms?
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Steven Adams
Unemployment Insurance (UI) is a temporary financial assistance program administered by NYS Department of Labor for people who lost their job through no fault of their own. You file a claim, and if approved, you receive weekly payments while you search for new employment. The amount depends on your previous wages, but it's typically about 50% of your weekly salary up to a maximum. You'll need to file weekly claims and meet job search requirements to keep receiving benefits.
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Grace Durand
•How long does the whole process take? Like from when I apply to when I actually get money?
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Alice Fleming
The basics are pretty straightforward - you go to ny.gov and create an account, then file your initial claim with all your employment history. NYS Department of Labor reviews it and either approves or sends it to adjudication if there are questions. Once approved, you file weekly claims every Sunday and the money gets deposited to your bank account or debit card. Just make sure you were laid off or terminated, not quit voluntarily, or you might get disqualified.
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Hassan Khoury
•What if you got fired though? Does that automatically disqualify you from unemployment?
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Alice Fleming
•Not necessarily - depends on why you were fired. If it was for performance issues or downsizing, you're usually fine. If it was for misconduct like stealing or violating company policy, then yeah, you'd probably be disqualified.
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Victoria Stark
been on unemployment twice now and honestly the NYS Department of Labor system is pretty user friendly once you get the hang of it... just make sure you keep detailed records of everything because they can ask for documentation later
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Benjamin Kim
THANK GOD someone asked this because I'm in the exact same boat! Got laid off yesterday and have been stressing about money. This thread is already helping me understand what I need to do next.
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Samantha Howard
One thing I wish someone told me when I first filed - if you have trouble getting through to NYS Department of Labor on the phone (which happens A LOT), there's actually a service called Claimyr that helps you reach them. Check out claimyr.com and they have a demo video at https://youtu.be/qyftW-mnTNI. Saved me hours of busy signals when I had questions about my claim status.
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Grace Durand
•Interesting, never heard of that before. Does it actually work or is it just another scam?
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Samantha Howard
•No it's legit - I was skeptical too but they actually got me connected to a real NYS Department of Labor rep when I needed to resolve an adjudication issue. Way better than sitting on hold for hours.
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