Just wanted to jump in here as someone who went through this exact same terrifying experience about 8 months ago! When I saw "Disqualified" on my first week, I literally thought I was going to lose my house because I was convinced they'd denied my entire claim. Spent the whole weekend in a panic before my coworker explained it was just the waiting week. It's absolutely insane that ESD continues to use this terminology when it clearly traumatizes people who are already dealing with the stress of unemployment. The waiting week is mandated by state law and applies to everyone - you haven't done anything wrong! Just keep filing your weekly claims and make sure you're doing your 3 job search activities each week. You should start getting paid from week 2 onward assuming everything else checks out. Hang in there - the system is confusing but you're doing everything right!

I just went through this exact same experience two weeks ago! Filed my first unemployment claim and when I saw "Disqualified" on week one, I literally had a panic attack thinking I'd been completely denied. I must have refreshed the page 20 times hoping it would change to something less terrifying. The terminology ESD uses is honestly cruel - imagine using the word "Disqualified" to describe what's basically just a standard waiting period that EVERYONE has to go through! I ended up finding this community while frantically googling at 3am, and reading similar stories was the only thing that calmed me down. It's such a relief to know this is completely normal, but also infuriating that ESD puts so many people through this unnecessary emotional roller coaster. For anyone else reading this who's currently panicking about seeing "Disqualified" - you're okay, you didn't mess up, it's just their awful way of labeling the mandatory one-week waiting period. Keep filing your weekly claims and you should start getting paid from week two onwards!

awesome! now make sure u keep doing ur weekly claims on time so u dont have more delays!

So happy to hear it finally came through! 🎉 That must be such a huge weight off your shoulders after 7 weeks of stress. For anyone else reading this thread who's still waiting - this gives me hope that the system does eventually work, even if it's painfully slow. Zara, enjoy that financial breathing room and thanks for updating us with the good news!

Quick update on this issue: I'm seeing several similar reports this week. It appears there may be a system-wide delay in updating the Decision tab after disqualification statuses are applied. Important: If you reported ANY work during the week you were disqualified, carefully check if you provided: - Exact hours worked each day - Complete employer information - Correct gross earnings (before taxes) Many claimants are being auto-disqualified right now if the work details section is incomplete. You can often get this quickly resolved by calling, but as others have mentioned, reaching an agent is the challenge.

Glad to see you got it resolved @Charlie Yang! This is such a common issue and your experience highlights why it's so important to categorize work correctly when reporting. For anyone else dealing with this - if you did ANY type of gig work, contract work, or freelance work during your claim week, make sure you're selecting the right employer type. The system treats regular W-2 employment very differently from 1099/contractor work, and getting that wrong can trigger an automatic disqualification flag. Also want to echo what others said about calling right at 7:30am - that really is the sweet spot for getting through to an actual person at ESD.

Just checking in - any updates on your claim? Has the governor's office expedite helped yet?

Thanks for checking back! I actually just saw movement in my portal this morning - my claim status changed from

The whole system is set up to confuse people. Why can't Washington ESD just have clear guidance on their website about common situations like this?

Thanks everyone for all the helpful responses! This thread has been incredibly valuable. I'm feeling much more confident about filing my claim now. It sounds like the key points are: 1) WARN Act pay is different from regular severance and typically doesn't delay your claim, 2) You still need to report it on weekly certifications as other income, and 3) Be transparent about everything when filing. I'll make sure to clearly indicate it's WARN Act pay (not regular severance) when I file this week. Really appreciate this community for providing real-world experiences when the official channels are so hard to navigate!