Why is high unemployment bad for my NYS Department of Labor claim approval chances?
I'm seeing news about unemployment rates going up in my area and I'm worried this might hurt my chances of getting my UI claim approved. Filed 2 weeks ago and still waiting on adjudication. Does the NYS Department of Labor reject more claims when unemployment is high because they're trying to save money? My friend said they get stricter during bad economic times but I'm not sure if that's true. Has anyone noticed their claims taking longer or getting denied more often lately?
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Ally Tailer
High unemployment doesn't affect individual claim decisions - the NYS Department of Labor evaluates each claim based on your specific work history and separation reason. What matters is whether you meet the eligibility requirements, not the overall economic situation. However, higher claim volumes can slow down processing times during adjudication.
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Callum Savage
•That's reassuring, thanks! So my claim should get processed the same way regardless of how many other people are filing?
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Aliyah Debovski
actually i think they do get more strict when lots of people file because they run out of money faster... my cousin got denied last year when unemployment was really high and she had to appeal
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Ally Tailer
•The NYS Department of Labor trust fund operates independently of current claim volumes. Denial rates are based on eligibility criteria, not budget concerns. Your cousin's denial was likely due to a specific disqualification reason that could have been appealed regardless of economic conditions.
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Miranda Singer
What you're experiencing is just normal adjudication delays. I had the same worry when I filed during a recession. The real issue with high unemployment is that it overwhelms their phone system - took me weeks to get through to check my claim status. That's when I found claimyr.com which connects you directly to NYS Department of Labor agents. There's a demo video at https://youtu.be/qyftW-mnTNI showing how it works. Made it much easier to get updates on my adjudication.
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Cass Green
•How much does that service cost? I've been trying to call for days and keep getting disconnected.
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Miranda Singer
•I focused more on the value of actually reaching someone rather than the cost. When you're worried about your claim getting processed, being able to speak to an actual person is worth it.
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Finley Garrett
The NYS Department of Labor is ALWAYS overwhelmed and slow!! Doesn't matter if unemployment is high or low, they find ways to make simple claims take FOREVER. My adjudication took 6 weeks last time and that was during good economic times. The system is just broken.
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Madison Tipne
•Yeah same here, waited 5 weeks for them to approve something super straightforward
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Holly Lascelles
dont worry about the economic stuff just make sure you keep filing your weekly claims while waiting. missing those will definitely hurt your benefits once approved
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