TWC claim denied because employer won't verify employment - he has W-2 and paystubs!

Your friend 100% needs to appeal this determination immediately! He only has 14 calendar days from the date on that determination letter to file the appeal. This happens more often than you'd think - especially with smaller businesses that don't want their UI tax rates to increase. He should submit copies (not originals) of ALL documentation: W-2, every paystub he has, any employment contract, emails from his work account, badge photos, etc. The more paper trail the better. He can file the appeal online through his TWC account or mail it in, but online is faster.

omg this literally happened to my cousin last year!! his boss was such a jerk and tried to say he only worked there for like 2 months when it was really over a year. twc ended up approving him after he sent in all his pay stubs. tell your friend to keep fighting!!

Your friend should also file a wage claim with the Texas Workforce Commission if the employer is denying his employment. This is separate from unemployment and deals specifically with wage theft/employment verification issues. You can do this even while appealing the UI denial. The TWC wage claim investigation might actually help his unemployment case too.

I went through something similar and it was a huge headache trying to reach TWC to explain my situation. I was getting disconnected constantly or waiting for hours. Finally used a service called Claimyr (claimyr.com) that got me connected to a TWC agent in about 20 minutes instead of spending days trying. They have a video showing how it works: https://youtu.be/V-IMvH88P1U?si=kNxmh025COIlIzKh For a situation like your friend's where there's documentation but the employer is being difficult, actually talking to a live agent makes a huge difference. They can see the notes on his file and give specific guidance on what documentation to submit with the appeal.

Tell your friend to be VERY CAREFUL about the appeal deadline!!! I missed mine by ONE DAY and had to start the whole process over with a new claim. The letter says 14 calendar days not business days!!!! Also the determination letter should list exactly why they denied him - make sure he addresses that specific reason in his appeal. If it says "unable to verify employment" then the W2 and paystubs should be enough but he needs to highlight the employer name and his name on all docs.

The Texas workforce system is SO BROKEN. I had 3 appeals last year because my employer kept lying about everything. Make sure your friend knows that the appeal hearing is usually by phone and THE EMPLOYER WILL BE ON THE CALL too! He needs to stay calm and professional even when they lie. Also tell him to talk to the hearing officer ONLY - not argue directly with the employer. And he should practice explaining his case in 2-3 minutes because they don't give you much time.

One more important tip: If your friend is still waiting on his 2023 tax return, he should at least get a tax transcript from the IRS website. It's free and shows all W-2s that were filed for his SSN. This is official government documentation that the hearing officer will take seriously. The transcript will confirm which employers reported wages for him and how much - which directly contradicts the employer's claim that he didn't work there. This kind of third-party verification can be extremely convincing in appeal hearings.

had the same thing happen to me last year my boss was trying to avoud paying unemployemnt taxes i guess. i brought my w2 and paystubs to the appeal hearing and won. but it took like 6 weeks to get a hearing date. tell your friend to apply for food stamps while he waits cause the appeal process is slooooow

Just to add something important - your friend should gather any evidence of his job search efforts while this is being resolved. Texas currently requires 3 work search activities per week to remain eligible for benefits. Even though his claim is denied right now, if he wins the appeal, he'll need to prove he was doing the required work searches during this waiting period to receive backpay for those weeks. Have him document everything and keep screenshots of job applications.