PA UC weekly claim after job offer but before start date - can I still file?

You should absolutely report that you accepted a job offer. PA UC asks if you refused work (which you didn't) and if you had earnings for the week (which you didn't). The system doesn't specifically ask when you accepted a job offer - it's more focused on whether you actually worked and earned money during the claim week. Since you haven't started working yet, you should be eligible for benefits for last week.

congrats on the new job!! i was in this exact situation last month. you're fine to claim for the week before you start working. they only care about actual work hours and earnings, not job offers.

BE CAREFUL! PA UC is super picky about reporting EVERYTHING. When I got my job last year I reported the acceptance date AND my start date just to make sure I didn't get in trouble. Better safe than sorry with these people!!! They'll come after you for overpayments months later and it's a NIGHTMARE to fix!!

Quick question - does anyone know if job search requirements change once you've accepted a job but haven't started yet? Do I still need to apply to places this week?

Not to hijack this thread, but I've been trying to reach PA UC for THREE DAYS to ask this exact question and can't get through. Always busy signals or disconnects after waiting forever. Has anyone used that Claimyr service? I saw it mentioned on another thread - something about getting you through to a real person? Their site is claimyr.com and they have a video showing how it works: https://youtu.be/CEPETxZdo9E?si=WL1ZzVZWG3KiHrg2

To summarize for anyone else in this situation: 1. You CAN and SHOULD file for the week before you start working, even if you accepted a job offer during that week 2. You only report work and earnings once you actually START the job 3. You must continue doing your work search activities until your first day of work 4. On the week you start working, you'll report your hours and earnings 5. If you earned more than your weekly benefit amount in your first work week, that will be your last eligible week Congratulations on the new job!

Just wanted to add my experience - I was in a similar situation a few months ago and filed for the week between accepting the offer and starting work. No issues at all! The key thing to remember is that PA UC really does focus on actual work performed and wages earned during the claim week. Since you hadn't started working yet, you're still eligible for that week's benefits. Just make sure when you file next week (after you've started) that you accurately report your work hours and earnings. Good luck with the new job!

I went through this exact same situation about 6 months ago! Filed for the week between accepting my offer and starting work with no problems whatsoever. The PA UC system is pretty straightforward - they want to know if you worked and earned money during that specific claim week. Since you accepted the offer but didn't actually work, you're still eligible for benefits for that week. Just be sure to report your actual work hours and earnings when you file for the week you start working. The transition from UC to employment is smoother than you might think - they expect people to have gaps between accepting offers and starting work. Congrats on landing the job!

I actually had this EXACT same situation happen to me about 8 months ago! Got a job offer on a Wednesday, didn't start until the following Monday. I was so stressed about what to do with my weekly claim, but I ended up filing normally for that week since I hadn't actually worked or earned any money yet. No issues whatsoever - got my benefits for that week and then just made sure to accurately report my hours and earnings when I filed the following week after I'd started working. The key thing everyone's mentioned is spot on - PA UC cares about what you actually DID during the claim week (worked/earned money), not what you're GOING to do. You're totally fine to claim for last week! And huge congrats on the new job - that's awesome news!

I'm actually going through this exact situation right now! Just accepted a job offer yesterday but don't start until next Monday. I was really stressing about filing my weekly claim for this week, but reading through all these responses has been incredibly helpful. It sounds like the consensus is pretty clear - as long as you haven't actually worked or earned money during the claim week, you're still eligible for benefits even if you've accepted a job offer. The system is asking about what happened during that specific week, not what's going to happen in the future. I feel so much better about filing normally for this week and then reporting my actual work hours and earnings when I file next week after I've started. Thanks everyone for sharing your experiences - it's amazing how common this situation is! And @Lilly Curtis, congratulations on your new job too!

I went through this exact same thing about 4 months ago! Got my job offer on a Wednesday, started the following Monday. I was so paranoid about messing up my UC claim that I actually called the PA UC office (took 2 hours on hold but finally got through). The rep confirmed what everyone here is saying - you file normally for any week where you didn't actually work or earn wages, regardless of whether you accepted a job offer during that week. The system is designed around actual work performed, not future commitments. I claimed benefits for that in-between week with zero issues, then accurately reported my work hours when I filed the following week. Don't overthink it - you're doing everything right! And congratulations on landing the job - that's such great news!

I'm actually in a very similar situation right now - just got a job offer yesterday but won't start until next week! Reading through all these responses has been such a huge help. It's really reassuring to see so many people who've been through this exact same scenario and had no issues filing for the week between accepting the offer and actually starting work. The consensus seems super clear - PA UC cares about actual work performed and wages earned during the specific claim week, not job offers or future employment plans. I was definitely overthinking this and getting myself all worked up about potentially making a mistake, but everyone's experiences here show that this is actually a pretty common and straightforward situation. Thanks to everyone who shared their stories - it's made me feel so much more confident about filing normally for this week and then reporting my actual work hours next week when I start! And congrats @Lilly Curtis on your new job - it's exciting when you finally land something after all that searching!

I'm currently in this exact situation too! Just accepted a job offer on Friday but don't start until next Tuesday. Reading through everyone's experiences here has been so reassuring - it's clear that this is a really common scenario and that PA UC handles it pretty straightforwardly. The consistent message from everyone who's been through this is that you file normally for any week where you didn't actually work or earn wages, regardless of job offers. The system focuses on what actually happened during that specific claim week, not future employment plans. I was definitely stressing about this over the weekend, but seeing all these real-world examples of people who handled it this way with no issues has really put my mind at ease. Thanks to everyone for sharing their experiences - this thread is going to help so many people in similar situations! And huge congratulations @Lilly Curtis on landing your new job!

This thread is so timely for me! I'm actually in this exact situation right now - just accepted a job offer yesterday but don't start until next Monday. I've been stressing about my weekly claim all weekend, but reading through everyone's experiences here has been incredibly helpful and reassuring. It's amazing how common this situation actually is! The consistent advice from everyone who's been through this is crystal clear - you can and should file normally for any week where you didn't actually work or earn wages, even if you accepted a job offer during that week. PA UC focuses on what actually happened during the specific claim week, not future employment plans. I was definitely overthinking this and getting myself worked up about potentially making some kind of mistake, but all these real success stories show that the process is much more straightforward than I was imagining. Thanks to everyone for sharing your detailed experiences - this thread is going to help so many people! And congratulations @Lilly Curtis on your new job - it's such an exciting feeling when you finally land something after all that searching!

I'm dealing with this exact same situation right now! Just accepted a job offer yesterday but won't start until next week. This thread has been absolutely invaluable - I was really stressing about whether I could still file my weekly claim for this week. It's so comforting to see how many people have navigated this identical scenario successfully! The consistent advice from everyone's experiences is really clear: you file normally for any week where you didn't actually work or earn wages, regardless of job offers received during that week. PA UC focuses on what actually happened during the specific claim period, not future employment commitments. I was definitely overthinking this and getting anxious about potentially making an error that could cause overpayment issues later. But seeing all these detailed success stories from people who handled it exactly this way really gives me confidence to proceed. Thanks to everyone for sharing such helpful experiences - this community is such an amazing resource! And huge congratulations @Lilly Curtis on your new job - it's such an exciting milestone after all that job searching effort!

I'm currently going through this exact same situation! Just accepted a job offer on Wednesday but won't start until next Monday. Reading through all these responses has been incredibly reassuring - it's amazing how many of us are dealing with this identical scenario right now! The consistent advice from everyone who's shared their experiences is crystal clear: you can file normally for any week where you didn't actually work or earn wages, even if you accepted a job offer during that week. PA UC really does focus on what actually happened during the specific claim period (work performed and wages earned) rather than future employment plans or job offers. I was definitely overthinking this and getting myself stressed about potentially making some kind of mistake that could cause overpayment issues down the road. But seeing all these detailed success stories from people who handled it exactly this way with zero problems really gives me the confidence to proceed. This thread has been such a valuable resource - thanks to everyone for taking the time to share their experiences so thoroughly! And huge congratulations @Lilly Curtis on landing your new job - it's such an exciting feeling when you finally get that offer after all the searching and waiting!

I'm actually in this exact same situation right now too! Just got a job offer yesterday but don't start until Monday. This entire thread has been such a lifesaver - I was really stressing about whether I should file my weekly claim for this week or not. It's so reassuring to see how many people have been through this identical scenario and had no problems at all! The consistent advice from everyone's experiences is really clear: you can file normally for any week where you didn't actually work or earn wages, even if you accepted a job offer during that time. PA UC focuses on what actually happened during that specific claim week (actual work and earnings), not on job offers or future employment plans. I was definitely overthinking this and getting myself worked up about potentially making some mistake that could cause overpayment issues later. But reading all these detailed success stories from people who handled it exactly this way with zero problems really gives me confidence. Thanks to everyone for sharing such helpful experiences - this community is amazing! And congratulations @Lilly Curtis on your new job - it's such an exciting feeling when you finally land something after all that job searching!

I'm in this exact situation right now too! Just accepted a job offer on Friday but don't start until next Tuesday. This thread has been absolutely incredible to find - I was really panicking about my weekly claim situation over the weekend. It's so comforting to see how many people are going through this identical scenario! The advice from everyone's real experiences has been so consistent and clear: you can file normally for any week where you didn't actually work or earn wages, even if you accepted a job offer during that time. PA UC really does focus on what actually happened during that specific claim week (actual work performed and wages earned), not on job offers or future employment commitments. I was definitely overthinking this whole thing and getting myself all stressed about potentially making some mistake that could cause problems later. But seeing all these detailed success stories from people who navigated this exact transition with zero issues really gives me the confidence to move forward. This community has been such an amazing resource - thanks to everyone for taking the time to share your experiences so thoroughly! And huge congratulations @Lilly Curtis on your new job - it's such an exciting milestone when you finally get that offer after all the searching and waiting!