Can I reopen my PA UC claim after being laid off from a casual job that disqualified me?
So my situation is pretty frustrating. I was laid off from my full-time warehouse job about 6 weeks ago and started collecting unemployment. Then I picked up what they called a "casual position" at a retail store to help make ends meet while job hunting. The manager there kept scheduling me juuust enough hours to mess up my UC benefits (I think it was like 32-34 hours some weeks), but not enough to actually pay my bills without the UC. Now they just let me go this past Saturday saying they "don't need the extra help anymore." Can I just reopen my original unemployment claim? Will I have to start all over? I'm worried because I've been applying to jobs but haven't gotten any offers yet and rent is due next week. Has anyone dealt with something like this before?
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Natalia Stone
Yes, you can reopen your existing claim since it's only been 6 weeks. Log into your PA UC dashboard, select "Reopen Existing Claim" option, and follow the prompts. Since you're within the same benefit year, your weekly benefit amount should remain the same. Make sure when filing that you accurately report the dates you worked at the casual job and that you were laid off (not quit). The system will ask if you've worked since last filing - be sure to enter all your earnings from the casual job correctly.
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Nolan Carter
•Thank you so much for the info!! Do you know how long it usually takes for benefits to restart after reopening? Will there be a waiting week again?
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Tasia Synder
same thing happened to me!! worked at target for like 5 weeks then they cut my hours to nothing. so annoying
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Nolan Carter
•Did you have any trouble reopening your claim? How long did it take to get paid again?
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Selena Bautista
They do this all the time. Companies hire temps just under the threshold that would qualify them for benefits or make them full time then dump them. It's disgusting but totally legal. You should be fine reopening your claim though.
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Mohamed Anderson
•This is exactly right. I worked in HR before getting laid off myself, and many companies deliberately schedule people just under the thresholds. It's a terrible practice but completely widespread. The system is designed to exploit workers while maximizing profits.
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Ellie Perry
When you reopen your claim, make sure you have exact start and end dates for the casual job, plus your total earnings. I had to reopen my claim last month and got stuck in pending status for 3 weeks because I didn't have all my pay stubs ready. Also make sure you keep doing your work search activities (applying to jobs) and documenting them even while waiting for the claim to reopen!
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Nolan Carter
•That's good to know, I have all my paystubs luckily. I've definitely been keeping up with my job search activities but haven't heard back from many places yet. Hoping something comes through soon.
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Landon Morgan
I tryed reopening my claim last year and it got stuck in "open issue" status for like 2 months. Could never get anyone on the phone kept calling everyday. So frustrating!!! Eventually i just found another job cause i gave up on PA UC ever helping me.
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Teresa Boyd
•I had the same problem with contacting PA UC! After getting endless busy signals, I used Claimyr (claimyr.com) to get through to an agent. They have this service that calls for you and connects you directly to a PA UC agent when they answer. Saved me hours of redialing. You can see how it works here: https://youtu.be/CEPETxZdo9E?si=WL1ZzVZWG3KiHrg2 - it's what finally got my reopened claim unstuck from 'open issue' status.
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Mohamed Anderson
To answer your specific question - no, you don't need to start all over with a new claim. Since you're still within your benefit year (which lasts 52 weeks from when you first applied), you'll just reopen the existing claim. The system will calculate any deductions for the weeks you worked, but you should be eligible again now that you've been laid off from the casual position. One thing to watch for: If your base-year wages have changed because of this temporary job, PA UC might recalculate your weekly benefit amount. This usually takes a few days for processing once you reopen. Also, make sure you don't miss any weekly certifications while waiting for the reopened claim to process!
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Nolan Carter
•That makes sense, thank you! I'll make sure to keep filing my weekly claims. One more question - will I need to serve another waiting week? The first time I filed there was that one-week period where I didn't get paid.
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Natalia Stone
You should not have to serve another waiting week since you're reopening within the same benefit year. The waiting week is only served once per benefit year. Just make sure you reopen the claim as soon as possible since benefits aren't retroactive - you can't claim for weeks before you reopen.
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Nolan Carter
•Perfect, that's a relief! I'm going to reopen it today. Thanks for all the help everyone.
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Tasia Synder
did they give u any notice before letting u go?? i think thats illegal
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Mohamed Anderson
•Pennsylvania is an at-will employment state, so unfortunately, for most positions, employers can terminate without notice unless there's a specific employment contract stating otherwise. Larger employers doing mass layoffs would fall under WARN Act requirements, but for individual terminations of casual workers, there's typically no legal notice requirement.
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Ellie Perry
Just wanted to follow up - were you able to reopen your claim successfully? Any issues with the process? I'm curious because I might be in a similar situation soon if my hours get cut any further at my current job.
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Nolan Carter
•Yes! I reopened it yesterday and it seemed to go through. The system accepted it and said I'm eligible to file my weekly certification on Sunday. Fingers crossed the payments start next week. The only tricky part was having to enter all the employment info for the casual job, so definitely have that ready if you need to do this.
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