5 weeks no unemployment payment from ESD - normal or problem?

Unfortunately that's not normal, even with ESD's slow processing. Most claims should be resolved within 2-3 weeks max. After 5 weeks, something is likely holding up your claim - could be identity verification, employer response issues, or you might be in adjudication without proper notification. Check your notices tab in eServices to see if there are any letters or requests for information you might have missed. Also look under the "upload documents" section to see if anything is being requested.

Def not normal! My claim was approved in 10 days last month. Have you tried sending a message through the eServices portal? Sometimes they respond to those faster than calls. Click on "Contact Us" and select "Claims Questions" from the dropdown. Be super specific about your situation and include your claim ID number in the message.

5 weeks is ridiculous! I was in the same boat last year and it turned out they'd flagged my claim for "identity verification" but never actually sent me the notification! The whole system is designed to make people give up. Keep calling and document EVERYTHING. Write down every call attempt with date and time. You might need it if you have to escalate to your state representative (which I ended up having to do).

Hey, I went through something similar and what worked for me was using Claimyr to get through to an ESD agent. I was in the same boat - 6 weeks with no payment and couldn't get through on the phone. Claimyr got me connected to a live agent in about 20 minutes. Turns out my claim was stuck in ID verification but they never sent me the notice! The agent fixed it on the spot. You can check out how it works at claimyr.com or watch their demo video https://youtu.be/7DieNd3C7zQ?si=26TzE_zGms-DODN3. Way better than wasting hours on hold only to get disconnected.

Yeah it's legit! I was skeptical too but desperate after weeks of trying. They use some tech that holds your place in line so you don't have to stay on hold yourself. When an agent is about to pick up, they call you and connect you. Saved me tons of frustration.

Are you making sure to file your weekly claims properly while waiting? I've seen people get denied because they missed weekly certifications thinking they should wait until the initial claim was approved. You need to keep filing every week even if you haven't been approved yet!

my friend work at esd she say they r super backed up right now cuz of new system update + layoffs in tech and construction. but 5 weeks is still 2 long. call at exactly 7:59am thats when lines open u might get thru

One important thing to check - log into your SAW account and make sure your identity verification is complete. With the new system rollout this year, many people are getting stuck because their ID verification wasn't properly linked between SAW and ESD accounts. Go to your SecureAccess Washington account first (not directly to ESD) and check your profile status. If it shows anything other than "Verified" under identity, that's likely your holdup. Also, double-check that you answered the able and available questions correctly on your weekly claims. If you indicated you weren't available for work for any reason, that can trigger a hold.

That's your problem right there! Click on the verification section in your SAW account and it should give you options to verify your identity through ID.me or in person. The ID.me option is faster - you'll need to upload photos of your ID and take a selfie video. Once that's complete, it usually processes within 24-48 hours, and then your ESD claim should start moving again. This is a really common issue with the new system, but for some reason ESD isn't clearly communicating it to claimants. They should be sending notifications about this but obviously that's not happening consistently.

I had to wait almost 8 weeks last year!! So stressful. But they did eventually backpay everything. Make sure you answer YES to actively looking for work and list 3 job search activities each week or they'll flag your claim for investigation which adds more delays.

this happened to me to! the id.me thing fixed it but took another week after that. they backdated all payments tho

UPDATE: I completed the ID.me verification and got an email this morning saying my identity is now verified! My claim status changed from "pending" to "processing" so it looks like things are finally moving. THANK YOU all for your help - especially for pointing out the SAW verification issue. I would have never figured that out on my own since ESD never mentioned it anywhere.

Awesome update! So glad you got it sorted out - this is exactly why I love this community. The SAW/ID.me verification issue has been tripping up so many people since the system changes this year. ESD really needs to do a better job communicating these requirements upfront instead of leaving people stuck for weeks. Hope you get your first payment soon and can catch up on those bills! 🙏