Why is my unemployment under fact finding investigation with NYS Department of Labor

Fact finding usually means NYS Department of Labor needs to verify something about your eligibility or work history. Common triggers include employer disputes about your separation reason, wage discrepancies, or questions about your availability for work. Check your my.ny.gov inbox and regular mail - they should have sent you a notice explaining what documentation they need.

same thing happened to me last month!! took forever to get through to anyone on the phone. turned out my old employer contested my claim saying I quit when I was actually laid off. had to send in my termination paperwork to prove it

You need to be proactive about this. NYS Department of Labor fact finding can take 4-6 weeks if you don't stay on top of it. Call the customer service line first thing in the morning - that's when you have the best chance of getting through. If you can't reach them after multiple attempts, I'd recommend trying Claimyr (claimyr.com). They helped me get through to an actual agent when I was stuck in adjudication hell. There's a video demo at https://youtu.be/qyftW-mnTNI that shows how it works.

The fact finding process is RIDICULOUS. They put your benefits on hold over the tiniest things and then take weeks to investigate while you're sitting there with no income. I went through this when they questioned whether I was 'able and available' because I mentioned in my job search log that I had a doctor's appointment one day. Took them a month to decide that yes, going to the doctor doesn't make you unavailable for work. The whole system is broken.

Don't panic yet - fact finding doesn't necessarily mean there's a problem with your claim. Sometimes it's just routine verification. Make sure you keep filing your weekly claims even while it's under review, and document everything. If they do need additional information from you, respond immediately to avoid further delays.

I went through something similar earlier this year. In my case, the fact finding was triggered because there was a discrepancy between what I reported as my last day of work and what my employer reported to the state. Even though I hadn't received any formal notice, I decided to gather all my employment documents (pay stubs, termination letter, etc.) and fax them to the adjudication unit along with a cover letter explaining my situation. This seemed to speed up the process - I got a determination letter about 10 days later. The fax number should be on the NYS DOL website under the adjudication section. Worth trying while you're also attempting to get through by phone.

I'm dealing with the exact same situation right now! My claim has been under fact finding for about 3 weeks and like you, I haven't received any notification about what they need. I've been calling every morning but can't get through. One thing I learned from a friend who went through this is that sometimes the fact finding gets triggered automatically by their system when there's a minor data mismatch - could be something as simple as your employer reporting a slightly different last work date than what you put on your application. The frustrating part is they don't tell you what specifically triggered it. I'm planning to try that proactive document submission approach that Evan mentioned - seems like it can't hurt to get ahead of whatever they might be looking for.

I feel your frustration - the uncertainty is almost worse than knowing there's actually a problem. I went through a similar situation about 6 months ago where my claim got flagged for fact finding with no explanation. In my case, it turned out my previous employer had reported conflicting information about my separation date to the state, but I didn't find this out until I finally got through to a rep after weeks of calling. What helped me was keeping a detailed log of all my attempts to contact them (dates, times, how long I waited on hold) and also documenting my original employment situation with dates and details. When I finally did speak to someone, having all that information ready made the conversation much more productive. The whole process took about 5 weeks total, but once they had the clarification they needed, my back payments were released pretty quickly. Hang in there - it's incredibly stressful but most fact finding issues do get resolved eventually.