Why do I keep getting disqualified for unemployment benefits from NYS Department of Labor?
This is my third attempt at filing for unemployment and I keep getting disqualified by the NYS Department of Labor. The first time was last year when I quit my retail job because my manager was cutting my hours to basically nothing (like 8 hours a week). Got disqualified for voluntary quit. Then I got a warehouse job that lasted 6 months before they laid me off due to 'restructuring' but somehow NYS Department of Labor said I didn't earn enough in my base period?? Now I'm trying again after working at a restaurant for 4 months and they let me go for 'performance issues' but I swear it was because I couldn't work the overtime they wanted. Just got another disqualification letter and I'm so frustrated. What am I doing wrong here? Are there specific things that automatically disqualify you that I should know about?
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Lucas Schmidt
The voluntary quit disqualification makes sense unfortunately - even if your hours were cut, quitting typically disqualifies you unless you can prove it was for 'good cause' related to work conditions. For the base period issue, NYS Department of Labor looks at your earnings in the first 4 of the last 5 completed quarters before you filed. If you worked 6 months but filed right after being laid off, you might not have had enough wages in that base period. The 'performance issues' termination is trickier - if your employer reported it as misconduct, that would trigger a disqualification that you'd need to appeal.
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Eloise Kendrick
•So basically every time I lose a job there's some technicality that screws me over? This system is ridiculous. How am I supposed to know about base periods and stuff when I'm just trying to survive between jobs?
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Freya Collins
You need to appeal these disqualifications if you think they're wrong. For the performance termination especially - if they fired you for not working overtime (which you're not required to do), that shouldn't count as misconduct. File an appeal within 30 days of each disqualification notice and request a hearing. Document everything about why you were really terminated.
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Eloise Kendrick
•I appealed the first one but never heard anything back from NYS Department of Labor. How long do appeals usually take?
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Freya Collins
•Appeals can take 6-12 weeks right now. If you never heard back, you should call to check the status. They might have sent hearing info to an old address or you missed the hearing date.
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LongPeri
ugh same thing happened to me!! got fired from my last job for 'attendance' but i was sick with covid and they still counted it against me. nysdol denied my claim and now im basically screwed. this whole system is designed to keep people from getting help
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Lucas Schmidt
•If you were fired for COVID-related absences, that's actually something you can fight. NYS has specific protections for COVID-related job loss. You should definitely appeal that decision.
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Oscar O'Neil
I had similar issues reaching NYS Department of Labor to get clarification on my disqualifications. Ended up using this service called Claimyr (claimyr.com) that actually got me through to a real person at the unemployment office. They have a video demo at https://youtu.be/qyftW-mnTNI showing how it works. Was able to speak with an agent who explained exactly why I was disqualified and what steps I needed to take to fix it. Sometimes you just need to talk to someone who can look at your specific case.
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Eloise Kendrick
•How much does something like that cost? I'm already broke from not getting benefits.
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Oscar O'Neil
•It's definitely worth checking out their site for details. For me it was worth it just to finally understand what was going on with my claim instead of guessing.
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Sara Hellquiem
The base period thing caught me too - I thought if I worked and paid into unemployment I'd automatically qualify but there's all these weird timing rules. Make sure when you reapply you wait until you have enough quarters of earnings in your base period.
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Charlee Coleman
Wait I'm confused about the base period thing too. If someone worked for 6 months wouldn't that be enough? How many quarters do you need exactly? I might have the same problem when my temp job ends next month.
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Lucas Schmidt
•You need earnings in at least 2 quarters of your base period, and your total base period wages need to be at least 1.5 times your highest quarter. It's not just about how long you worked but when you worked relative to when you file your claim.
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