PA UC sent me a New Hire Benefit Audit but I wasn't rehired - what's going on?

omg this happened to me too! so annoying. your employer probably made a mistake with their reporting. don't panic yet

THE SYSTEM IS COMPLETELY BROKEN!!! This isn't a mistake - it's by DESIGN to deny people benefits!! I had the exact same thing happen in October and it took 6 WEEKS to resolve while they "investigated" even though I was obviously not working. They also put a hold on my payments during that time so I couldn't pay my mortgage. You need to call them IMMEDIATELY and keep calling until someone fixes it.

This is actually fairly common. The New Hire Benefit Audit can be triggered for several reasons: 1. Your employer accidentally reported you as a new hire instead of as terminated 2. Your employer continued you on payroll for unused PTO/severance which can trigger a new hire report 3. Someone with similar information (name, SSN) was hired elsewhere 4. There was a system error with the PA UC cross-match database You should complete the questionnaire right away and explain you were laid off and have not returned to work. Include your layoff date and any documentation you have. The sooner you respond, the faster this will be resolved. Also, keep filing your weekly claims as normal during this time.

I got caught in a similar situation last month and tried for 2 weeks to get through to a PA UC representative without success. Kept getting busy signals or disconnected. Finally discovered a service called Claimyr that got me connected to a UC rep in about 20 minutes instead of spending days redialing. They have a video demo at https://youtu.be/CEPETxZdo9E?si=WL1ZzVZWG3KiHrg2 that shows how it works. The agent I reached was able to see that my employer had incorrectly coded a final payout as regular wages and fixed it on the spot.

my cousin works at the unemployment office and says you HAVE to call them to fix this because if you just fill out the questionnaire it might sit in their system for weeks. you should also contact your former employer's HR department to have them correct the error on their end. sometimes employers report to the state quarterly and they might have messed up your status in their most recent report.

One more important thing - make sure you're still completing your weekly certifications even with this issue pending. The system will hold the payments until the issue is resolved, but if you don't certify each week, you won't be able to claim those weeks later. Also, upload any documentation you have showing your layoff date or separation paperwork to the UC portal under the "Provide Additional Documentation" section. This can speed up the resolution process.

My wife just went through this exact thing! Don't forget you also need to be doing your work search activities even while this issue is pending. The UC people told her they're still requiring those 2 work search activities per week regardless of open issues on your claim. Just a heads up!

i think this might be about that new reporting system PA started using in 2025. all employers have to submit new hire reports within like 20 days now instead of quarterly. maybe your separation and the new hire reporting got crossed somewhere. confusing system!!!!

Good news - completing the questionnaire should resolve this fairly quickly in most cases. Make sure to answer all questions accurately and mention specifically that you received severance, which was likely misreported as regular wages. You can check your claim status every few days, and once the issue is resolved, any held payments should be released automatically. If it's not resolved within 2 weeks after submitting your questionnaire, then you should definitely try calling.

Just wanted to update everyone - I called PA UC this morning using that Claimyr service someone mentioned and got through in about 15 minutes! The rep was super helpful and could see exactly what happened. My employer did report the severance payment incorrectly as regular wages, which triggered both the new hire audit and the able/available issue. She cleared both issues while I was on the phone and said my held payment should be released within 24-48 hours. Thanks everyone for the advice - definitely call if you can get through rather than just waiting on the questionnaire!