Just wanted to follow up on this thread - for those dealing with employer issues, this is exactly why PA requires the work search activities while you wait for determination. Even though it feels pointless when you're not getting paid yet, you need to be doing and documenting your work search activities (applying to jobs, attending workshops, etc.) every week during this waiting period. If you don't do this and then get approved, they could deny payment for weeks where you didn't complete and document your work search requirements. Make sure you're logging into the system and recording at least two work search activities each week.

my neighbor works for uc she says they super backlogged right now bc of some computer upgrade thing so everything taking longer than normal

To address a few of the questions that have come up in this thread: 1. For the original poster, there is no waiting period between benefit years. You can file your new application as soon as your current benefit year ends in February. 2. Regarding the 37% rule someone asked about: PA requires that at least 37% of your base year wages come from outside your highest earning quarter. This ensures you've had relatively steady work rather than just one good quarter. 3. For documentation, PA UC can access most wage records electronically, but having your pay stubs or W-2s ready is helpful if there are discrepancies. 4. You do need to fully requalify based on wages earned after you established your first benefit year. The construction industry downturn is hitting a lot of PA workers hard right now. If your claim is approved, make sure you're completing your work search activities each week (applying to at least two jobs and doing one work search activity). PA has been conducting more frequent work search audits lately.

Thank you all for the helpful responses! This clears up a lot of my questions. I'm relieved to hear I should be able to file a new claim after my current benefit year ends. I've been keeping detailed records of all my job search activities just in case. One follow-up question - if I somehow find part-time work before my current claim ends, will that affect my ability to file a new claim in February? Or would that part-time work actually help establish more base year wages for the new claim?

UPDATE: Just wanted to let everyone know what happened! I had my UC phone interview yesterday and the examiner asked about all 3 jobs. I explained that I quit the first job because working two jobs simultaneously was causing severe anxiety and affecting my performance at both places. I was worried because I didn't have documentation, but they seemed to understand. They focused more on confirming that my most recent employer eliminated remote positions (which I had documentation for). The examiner said they'd make a determination in 5-7 days. So fingers crossed, but she sounded positive! Thank you all for the advice - it really helped me prepare for the interview!

Great update! The fact that you maintained employment after quitting that first job is working in your favor. Your situation is actually quite common - PA UC understands that people sometimes need to quit one job while maintaining another for legitimate reasons. One important thing to remember: you must complete your work search activities each week (applying to jobs, attending workshops, etc.) and report them accurately when filing your weekly claims. PA requires 2-3 work search activities per week depending on your specific requirements. Also, once approved, consider setting up direct deposit rather than using the Money Network card - direct deposit is typically much faster.

pension rules r so complicated!!! my brother had his UC reduced cause of pension but my neighbor didnt idk why the difference honestly PA UC system seems like it just does whatever it wants sometimes lol but definitely report everything or theyll come after you

Thank you all for the helpful information! I'm going to apply for UC this week and make sure I disclose my pension situation completely. Based on what everyone has shared, it sounds like I might be able to collect both without a reduction since my pension would be from a completely different employer than the one who laid me off seasonally. I'll update this thread after I speak with someone at the UC office to let you all know how it turned out. Thanks again for all your help!

Update on my earlier advice - I looked into this more and found something important: After appeal hearings, there's a specific code that needs to be entered to restart your claim processing. Sometimes this doesn't happen automatically. When you call tomorrow, specifically ask if your appeal decision has been "implemented in the system" - that's the magic phrase that will tell you if they've actually processed the referee's decision correctly. If not, request an "implementation of referee decision" to restart your claim processing.

One more thing to try - check your PA Treasury account (not your UC account). Sometimes benefits get released but don't show up in the UC portal right away. It happened to my brother-in-law. His UC account showed open issues for weeks but the money was actually sitting in his Treasury account the whole time.

does any1 else think its ridiculous they expect us to do all this just to get benefits WE EARNED through our jobs? careerlink workshops r mostly useless anyway & now we get punished for not doing them?? the whole system needs fixed

Just following up - has anyone heard back about your appeal yet? In my experience, these work search disqualification appeals are taking about 3-4 weeks to process currently.

One thing to keep in mind: while your claim is under supervisor review, make sure you're still filing your weekly claims! A lot of people make the mistake of stopping their weekly certifications while waiting for a determination, but you need to keep filing to get all your back weeks once approved.

this is why the whole system is a joke. u literally need to get politicians involved just to get what ur owed. such a broken process.

does anyone know if u have to file the weekly claims during the appeal process? i forgot to file for 2 weeks while waiting for my appeal hearing cuz i thought it didnt matter and now im worried i wont get paid for those weeks even tho i won the appeal

UPDATE: My benefits just switched to "payable" status this morning! The rep I spoke to yesterday was right about the timeline. No payment date yet, but progress is happening. Thanks everyone for your help and advice - it really helped me understand the process better.

Have you tried contacting your state representative's office? That's what finally worked for me after waiting 8 WEEKS for my appeal hearing in Chester County. Their constituent services can sometimes light a fire under these departments. I was literally about to be evicted when they finally helped me get through.

When I was waiting for my appeal hearing (Bucks County, but probably similar), I was able to get through to a UC rep using Claimyr. It's a service that basically connects you directly to a PA UC agent without the busy signals and waiting. Cost me like a coffee but saved me days of stress. Saw it on a video here: https://youtu.be/CEPETxZdo9E?si=WL1ZzVZWG3KiHrg2 The rep couldn't speed up my hearing date, but at least I got confirmation that my appeal was properly filed and in the queue, which gave me peace of mind. They also told me what documentation to prepare for the hearing. Worth looking into at claimyr.com if you're desperate to speak to someone.

Another thing you can try is going on the PA UC website and send a message through your dashboard about your claim status. I got a response in like 48 hours when I did that and they actually fixed my issue after months of being stuck.

When they expedited mine earlier this year, I asked for and wrote down the ticket number they generated for the expedite request. When I called back to check status (a week later), having that number seemed to help them find the actual expedite request in the system. Might be worth calling again just to confirm they actually put in the expedite and get that reference number.