


Ask the community...
@casual_commenter Focus primarily on proving you were eligible at the time - that's the most important factor in the Referee's decision. Have your documentation organized and ready to reference. Speak clearly and directly answer questions. Only discuss financial hardship when specifically asked or when presenting your waiver request. Be respectful, don't interrupt, and take notes during the hearing. Good luck!
I just got my hearing scheduled for three weeks from now. I'm gathering all my documentation. Can anyone who's been through this tell me how long the hearing usually lasts? I need to make arrangements with my current job.
mine was about 45 minutes. referee was actually pretty nice and let me explain everything. make sure u have all ur documents ready to go and practice explaining your situation clearly. they record everything so try to stay calm and organized when u talk
Thanks, that's really helpful to know. I'll make sure to prepare and practice what I want to say beforehand.
UPDATE: Just finished my hearing and I think it went pretty well! The referee was actually very reasonable and let me fully explain my situation. She seemed particularly interested in: 1. My class schedule showing everything was asynchronous 2. My work search record (I had documentation for every week) 3. The fact that I had immediately reported my school enrollment She said I should receive a decision in 7-10 days. Fingers crossed! Thank you all for your advice - it helped me prepare much better than I would have on my own.
FINAL UPDATE: I WON MY APPEAL!!! Got the decision letter today - the referee ruled that my online education did NOT make me unavailable for work! The decision specifically mentioned that because my classes were asynchronous and I maintained consistent work search activities, I met the availability requirements under PA UC law. The $2,100 overpayment has been completely removed from my account. I'm so relieved I could cry. Thank you to everyone who helped me prepare!
Congratulations! This is exactly why it's so important to appeal these determinations. Too many people just accept the overpayment and pay it back when they shouldn't have to. Your detailed documentation made all the difference. Really happy for you!
anyone know if we can still use the automated phone system to file during maintenence? or is that down to
The PAT phone system should still be working during website maintenance, but as someone else mentioned, the call volume is going to be very high with the website down. You might be on hold for a long time.
Update: The site is back up now! Just filed my weekly claim successfully. Thanks everyone for the help and information!
thnx for posting! going to file mine now before it crashes again lol
i had the audit for new hire thing too and what actually happened was my previous employer told them i quit when i was actually laid off!!! make sure u check with ur previous employer what they told UC cuz sometimes they lie to avoid their UI tax going up. it took me going to a hearing to finally get my money (like 3 months later).
Just to add one more important point - make sure you're checking both your dashboard AND your physical mail. PA UC often sends determination letters via regular mail that don't show up in the online system. And sometimes they'll send requests for additional information this way too. If you miss responding to one of these, it can further delay your claim.
That's a good point - I've been obsessively checking my mailbox too, but haven't received anything from them. I'm going to try the appeal process mentioned above and also try to check with my previous employer to see what they reported. If those don't work, I might try that Claimyr service someone mentioned just to finally talk to a real person. Thanks everyone for the suggestions!
Dmitry Smirnov
what was ur appeal for? mine was for quitting my job but i had good reason (harassment) so they eventually approved it
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GalacticGuardian
•They said I didn't have enough wages in my base year which is completely wrong. I worked full-time the whole year before filing. I think they missed one of my employers in their calculation.
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Ava Rodriguez
One final piece of advice: Keep a detailed log of all your attempts to contact PA UC about your appeal status, including dates, times, and outcomes. This documentation can be useful during your hearing if the referee questions why you didn't take certain actions. Also, if you have documentation proving your wages for the base year, organize it chronologically and have it ready for your hearing. Appeals for wage record issues have a higher success rate than other types of appeals, especially when you can provide concrete documentation from all your employers during the base year period.
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GalacticGuardian
•Thank you, this is really helpful! I've got all my W-2s and paystubs organized already. I'll start keeping track of my calls too.
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