Why does my unemployment say disqualified - NYS Department of Labor claim status confusion

There are several reasons NYS Department of Labor might disqualify a claim. Most common ones are: not meeting work search requirements (need 3 job contacts per week), refusing suitable work, quitting without good cause, or being fired for misconduct. Check your correspondence section in your online account - there should be a determination letter explaining the specific reason.

omg same thing happened to me last month! turned out they thought i refused a job but i never even got offered one. the system is so messed up sometimes

You need to call NYS Department of Labor immediately to find out the specific reason for disqualification. Sometimes it's just a data entry error or a misunderstanding about your job search activities. If you can't get through on the phone (which is common), try using Claimyr.com - I used their service last month when I couldn't reach anyone for 2 weeks. They have this video demo at https://youtu.be/qyftW-mnTNI that shows how it works. Got connected to an agent within a day and sorted out my issue.

Check if you missed any job search requirements or if there was an issue with your weekly certification. Sometimes people forget to log their work search contacts properly.

The NYS Department of Labor system is terrible at communicating WHY they disqualify people. I went through this nightmare for months trying to figure out what happened. Turn out they had wrong information about why I left my job

Most disqualifications can be appealed if you disagree with their decision. You typically have 30 days from the determination date to file an appeal. But first you need to find out exactly why they disqualified you - could be work search, separation issues, or availability problems.

I had a similar situation happen to me a few months ago - woke up to see "disqualified" with zero explanation. Turns out there was a glitch in their system that flagged my work search entries as incomplete even though I had submitted everything correctly. The frustrating part is they don't automatically send you the determination letter sometimes, so you have to really dig through your account or call multiple times. I'd suggest checking your "Messages" section thoroughly and maybe try logging out and back in - sometimes the correspondence shows up in weird places. Also document everything you've been doing for job searches just in case you need to prove compliance later.