PA UC claim stuck on 'severance package letter' for a month - will severance payment affect eligibility?

Your severance shouldn't disqualify you completely from UC benefits, but it might delay when they start. PA considers severance pay as 'deductible income' and they usually allocate it over a period of time based on your previous weekly wage. For example, if you were making $1000/week and got $15000 severance, they might delay your benefits for 15 weeks. If you uploaded the severance letter, that's good, but sometimes they need additional info about exactly how it was calculated. The best way to resolve this is to speak directly with a claims examiner who can review your specific case and possibly clear the issue.

I had the same thing happen last yr. Took forEVER to get it sorted!! keep filing ur weeklys no matter what. they'll backdate everything once they fix the issue. my sevrance was like 8k and they made me wait like 8 weeks b4 the benefits kicked in.

According to the PA UC rules, your severance is allocated based on your weekly benefit rate, not your previous wage (that's a common misconception). For example, if your weekly benefit rate is $600, they would allocate your $15,000 severance over 25 weeks. What you're experiencing is normal, but the system should clearly tell you when your benefits will start. The fact that it just shows an open issue means someone needs to manually review your case and set up the allocation period. Unfortunately, this requires speaking with a claims examiner. You must continue filing your weekly claims! This establishes your continued eligibility and ensures you'll get all backdated payments once the severance allocation period ends. The challenge is getting through to someone who can help review your case and clear this issue.

I had a similar situation with my claim back in October - they needed to review my severance documentation and it was IMPOSSIBLE to get through on the UC phone lines!!! I wasted WEEKS trying to call every morning at exactly 8:00 am and would just get the stupid busy signal or the automated message saying call volume was too high. I finally used Claimyr.com to get through to a PA UC agent and got my issue resolved in one call. It connects you to unemployment directly without having to deal with busy signals. They have a video showing how it works here: https://youtu.be/CEPETxZdo9E?si=WL1ZzVZWG3KiHrg2 Once I got through, the agent told me exactly how many weeks my severance would delay my benefits. At least I knew where I stood!

lol welcome to PA unemployment hell!! they always do this with severance packages. took them 9 weeks to sort mine out last summer. just keep filling every week and eventually you'll get all the money at once (if ur eligible after severance). system is completely broken!!!!!

ATTENTION: PA UC applies a specific formula for severance allocations. They take your GROSS severance amount (before taxes) and divide it by your weekly benefit rate (not your former wages). This gives them the number of weeks your benefits will be delayed. YOUR ACTIONS NEEDED: 1) Keep filing weekly claims WITHOUT FAIL 2) Contact UC immediately to verify your severance allocation period 3) Ensure they have your correct severance documentation 4) Ask them to provide a WRITTEN DETERMINATION of when your benefits will begin PA UC is often TERRIBLE about communicating this information! You'll likely get all benefits as a lump sum after your waiting period ends, BUT ONLY IF you've maintained your weekly filing requirement!!! The system is DESIGNED to make you give up! DON'T STOP FILING!!!

btw did u check ur payment method in the system? my friend had an issue where her payments were going to the wrong bank cuz she didnt update it after changing banks. just a thought!

Just to clarify something important - if your severance was paid as a lump sum, PA UC will treat it differently than if it was paid as salary continuation. Based on what you described, they should be calculating a specific number of weeks to delay benefits based on your severance amount divided by your weekly benefit rate. Once you get through to someone, make sure they can tell you: 1. The exact date when your benefits will start flowing 2. Whether you'll receive all back payments at once 3. If there are any other unresolved issues besides the severance Some people have found success contacting their state representative's office for help with stubborn UC issues - might be worth trying if you continue having trouble reaching UC directly.

After reading through all the responses, I want to emphasize that your situation is fairly common but requires speaking with an examiner to resolve. Here's what's likely happening: 1. Your claim is approved conditionally 2. The system flagged your severance for review 3. An examiner needs to calculate the precise allocation period 4. Once allocated, they'll issue a determination letter stating when benefits begin 5. You'll receive all back payments for weeks after the allocation period (assuming you've filed weekly claims) The key is getting someone to review your case. PA UC is severely understaffed which creates these frustrating delays. However, once resolved, the system works according to clear rules. Many claimants go through this exact process with severance packages.

I went through this exact same situation with PA UC last year! Had a $12K severance package and my claim was stuck for 6 weeks with the same "severance package letter" issue. Here's what I learned: The delay happens because they have to manually calculate your "severance allocation period" - basically how many weeks your benefits will be postponed. They divide your gross severance by your weekly benefit amount (not your old salary). So if your weekly benefit rate is $500, your $15K severance would delay benefits for about 30 weeks. The frustrating part is that SOMEONE has to physically review your file and enter this calculation into the system. It's not automated. Once they do this, you'll get a determination letter explaining exactly when your benefits will start. My advice: Keep filing weekly no matter what, and try calling right at 8:00 AM on Tuesday or Wednesday (seemed to have better luck those days). When you do get through, ask them to expedite the severance review since you've been waiting over a month. You WILL get all your back payments once the allocation period is over, but only for weeks after the severance runs out. Hang in there - the system is slow but it does work eventually!

I'm dealing with a similar severance issue right now! Been waiting 3 weeks for them to review my case. One thing that helped me understand the timeline better was looking at my online account under "Issues" - it sometimes shows additional details about what specific documentation they're waiting for or reviewing. Also, I noticed you mentioned uploading the severance documentation when you first applied. Sometimes they need additional paperwork like a more detailed breakdown of how the severance was calculated, or a letter from your employer specifying the exact dates of employment that the severance covers. It might be worth double-checking what documents are actually in your file versus what they might still need. The waiting is absolutely brutal, especially when bills are piling up. I've been setting aside a specific time each day to call (usually right when they open) rather than calling randomly throughout the day. Seems to help me stay sane while dealing with this mess!

I'm going through something very similar right now! Got laid off in February with an $18K severance and my claim has been stuck on "severance package letter" for 3 weeks now. Reading through everyone's responses here has been SO helpful - I had no idea they calculate the delay by dividing your severance by your weekly benefit rate rather than your old salary. One thing I discovered that might help you is that you can sometimes get more specific information by logging into your PA UC account and checking the "Correspondence" section. Sometimes they send notices there that don't get mailed out right away. I found a message there last week asking for additional clarification about my severance terms that I had missed. Also, I've had slightly better luck getting through on the phone by calling the Spanish language line (if you speak Spanish) or the TTY line - they seem to have shorter wait times and can still help with English-speaking claims. Keep filing those weekly certifications no matter what! From what everyone is saying, we'll eventually get all the back pay once this gets sorted out. It's just frustrating having to wait so long with bills piling up. Hang in there!

I'm so glad I found this thread! I'm actually a former PA UC claims examiner (worked there for 3 years before switching careers) and wanted to share some insider knowledge that might help speed up your case. The "severance package letter" hold is one of the most common issues we dealt with, and unfortunately it requires manual review because the system can't automatically calculate complex severance scenarios. Here's what's likely happening behind the scenes: 1. Your case is sitting in a queue waiting for an examiner to review 2. They need to verify your severance terms match what's in their system 3. Once reviewed, they'll create a "disqualification period" equal to your severance divided by your weekly benefit rate 4. You'll get a determination letter explaining the exact dates The key thing most people don't know: if there's ANY discrepancy between your uploaded documents and what your employer reported to PA UC, it creates additional delays while they investigate. This could be something as simple as different dates or amounts. My advice: when you finally get through, ask the examiner to tell you exactly what severance information they have on file from your employer. If it doesn't match your documentation perfectly, that's likely why you're stuck. Also, Tuesday/Wednesday mornings right at 8 AM really were the best times to call - Monday mornings were always chaos and Friday afternoons were understaffed. Good luck!

I'm in almost the exact same boat! Got laid off in December with a $13,500 severance and my PA UC claim has been stuck on "severance package letter" for 7 weeks now. I've been filing weekly claims religiously but haven't seen a penny yet. Reading through all these responses has been a huge relief - I was starting to think my case was lost in the system forever! The insider info from the former examiner about potential discrepancies between employer-reported info and uploaded documents really opened my eyes. That might explain why some cases take way longer than others. I've been trying the 8 AM Tuesday/Wednesday calling strategy mentioned here and actually got through once last week, but the agent said she couldn't access my file and transferred me to another department where I got disconnected. SO frustrating! One thing I noticed that might help others - when I log into my PA UC account, under the "Payment History" section it shows all my weekly claims as "Pending - Open Issues" rather than just "Pending." Not sure if that means anything different, but thought I'd mention it. Has anyone had success getting their local state representative's office involved? I'm getting desperate and wondering if that might help move things along faster than waiting for the phone lottery.

I'm dealing with this exact same issue right now! My PA UC claim has been stuck on "severance package letter" for about 6 weeks after getting a $20K severance package from my tech job. Reading through all these responses has been incredibly helpful - especially the insider info from the former examiner about potential discrepancies between what employers report and what we upload. Based on what everyone's shared, it sounds like the key is getting through to an actual examiner who can manually review and calculate the severance allocation period. I've been trying the Tuesday/Wednesday 8 AM calling strategy with mixed results, but I'm going to keep at it. One thing I wanted to add that might help others - I discovered you can also try calling the "Employer Services" line and explaining that you need help with a claimant issue. Sometimes they can transfer you directly to the right department and bypass some of the busy signals on the main claimant line. Also, for anyone still waiting like we are - I contacted my former employer's HR department to get the exact details of what they reported to PA UC about my severance. Turns out there was a small discrepancy in the dates that might be causing the delay. Might be worth checking if you've been stuck for more than 4-5 weeks. Keep filing those weekly certifications everyone! From everything I've read here, we'll eventually get all the back pay once this gets sorted out. The system is broken but it does eventually work.