Can't reach Washington Unemployment? Claimyr connects you to a live ESD agent in minutes.
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Using Claimyr will:
- Connect you to a human agent at the ESD
- Skip the long phone menu
- Call the correct department
- Redial until on hold
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- Give you free callbacks if the ESD drops your call
If I could give 10 stars I would
If I could give 10 stars I would If I could give 10 stars I would Such an amazing service so needed during the times when EDD almost never picks up Claimyr gets me on the phone with EDD every time without fail faster. A much needed service without Claimyr I would have never received the payment I needed to support me during my postpartum recovery. Thank you so much Claimyr!
Really made a difference
Really made a difference, save me time and energy from going to a local office for making the call.
Worth not wasting your time calling for hours.
Was a bit nervous or untrusting at first, but my calls went thru. First time the wait was a bit long but their customer chat line on their page was helpful and put me at ease that I would receive my call. Today my call dropped because of EDD and Claimyr heard my concern on the same chat and another call was made within the hour.
An incredibly helpful service
An incredibly helpful service! Got me connected to a CA EDD agent without major hassle (outside of EDD's agents dropping calls – which Claimyr has free protection for). If you need to file a new claim and can't do it online, pay the $ to Claimyr to get the process started. Absolutely worth it!
Consistent,frustration free, quality Service.
Used this service a couple times now. Before I'd call 200 times in less than a weak frustrated as can be. But using claimyr with a couple hours of waiting i was on the line with an representative or on hold. Dropped a couple times but each reconnected not long after and was mission accomplished, thanks to Claimyr.
IT WORKS!! Not a scam!
I tried for weeks to get thru to EDD PFL program with no luck. I gave this a try thinking it may be a scam. OMG! It worked and They got thru within an hour and my claim is going to finally get paid!! I upgraded to the $60 call. Best $60 spent!
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- DO answer questions and support each other.
- DO post tips & tricks to help folks.
- DO NOT post call problems here - there is a support tab at the top for that :)
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I'm in the EXACT same boat right now!!! 6 weeks pending, Governor's office "escalation" 2 weeks ago, called by ESD last Thursday with promises to fix it "immediately" and STILL NOTHING!!! This system is BROKEN. My car payment bounced yesterday and now I'll have late fees on top of everything else. I'm filing a formal complaint with the state auditor's office because this is beyond unacceptable. We need to start making more noise about this systematic failure.
Filing with the state auditor is actually a good idea. They've been investigating ESD's processing times since the 2024 system upgrade that was supposed to improve things but clearly made them worse. You can submit a complaint here: https://sao.wa.gov/report-a-concern/
UPDATE: My claim that was pending for 5 weeks finally got resolved today! Here's what worked: I called my state representative's office (not the Governor) and explained the situation. Their constituent services person made a call directly to their ESD liaison (apparently each rep has one), and my claim was processed within 24 hours. Might be worth trying if the Governor's office route isn't working fast enough. Good luck!
That's a great tip, thank you! I hadn't thought of contacting my state rep. I'll look up who mine is and give their office a call tomorrow. Congrats on finally getting your claim resolved!
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Did you try checking your eligibility on the eServices portal? Sometimes it will tell you if you have enough quarters. Thats how I found out I could file a new claim after my seasonal retail job ended last year. I dint have to call at all just filed online
I tried checking eServices but it just kept directing me to reopen my existing claim, which then gave me an error saying I had no more benefits available. It never gave me an option to check eligibility for a new claim. Maybe the system has changed since you did it?
oh that sucks maybe they changed it. mine was different cuz my benefit year had ended so maybe thats why it worked for me. good luck!!
Just to follow up on this thread - the key terminology you need when calling is "new claim within the same benefit year after exhaustion of benefits." This is a specific situation addressed in ESD's regulations, but it requires agent intervention. Based on what you've shared about earning $28,000 in the fishing season this year, you should easily meet the 680-hour requirement and the minimum earnings threshold. When you connect with an agent, make sure to have: 1. Your employment dates for the fishing season 2. Approximate earnings amounts 3. Your employer's contact information 4. Your last day of work This will help speed up the process. And just to clarify for everyone, the online system isn't designed to handle this specific situation - it's not a glitch or an attempt to deny benefits, it's simply a limitation of the automated system that requires human intervention for these special cases.
Thank you so much for the follow-up! I finally got through to ESD this morning using the Claimyr service someone recommended. The agent knew exactly what to do when I mentioned "new claim within same benefit year after exhaustion." They took all my fishing season information and said I definitely qualify for a new claim! Benefits should start in about a week. Such a relief!
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Another thing to check: did you recently pass your benefit year end date? Sometimes there's a payment gap when your claim rolls over to a new benefit year, even if you have remaining benefits. The system might be recalculating your eligibility. They don't make this clear anywhere in the portal.
Just checked - my benefit year end date is still a few months away (September 2025). So that's not it either. This is so confusing!
Quick update: just got my payment today! It was just delayed for some reason. The double payment from last week was indeed for a back-week adjustment like someone mentioned. Thanks everyone for your help and suggestions!
Great news! Their payment processing is so unpredictable sometimes.
Glad it worked out! This is pretty common with ESD - their payment processing schedule seems to shift randomly sometimes. For future reference, it's helpful to know that while they usually process claims quickly, the actual bank deposit can take 1-3 business days depending on your bank and any holidays.
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Everyone has been so helpful - thank you! I'm going to apply right away and make sure I do those weekly claims even during severance. One last question: if I get a job offer during my severance period but the start date is after my severance ends, will I still be eligible for unemployment for those weeks between severance ending and my new job starting?
Yes, you would be eligible for those weeks between severance ending and your new job starting, as long as you continue meeting all other requirements (filing weekly claims, conducting job searches, being able and available for work). Just make sure to accurately report your job acceptance and future start date when it happens.
jut wondering - do you have to pay taxes on unemployment benifits? and do they take taxes out or you have to pay them later? trying to figure this out for my budgeting
Yes, unemployment benefits are taxable income. When setting up your claim, you'll have the option to have 10% withheld for federal taxes (there's no state income tax in WA). If you don't choose withholding, you'll need to account for taxes when filing your annual return. Many people don't realize this and end up with an unexpected tax bill.
Aidan Percy
Wait I'm confused about something. Does being in a union automatically exempt you from job searches even when NOT on standby? I thought union members still had to do job searches when not working unless they have standby status?
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Fiona Gallagher
•It depends on the type of union. Full referral unions (where all work must come through the union hiring hall) can provide an exemption from regular job searches. The claimant still has to be in good standing with the union and registered as available for work through their hiring hall. It's one of the few exemptions from job searches besides standby, approved training, and a few other special situations. Not all unions qualify though - only those with exclusive hiring hall arrangements.
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Aidan Percy
•Oh that makes sense! Thanks for explaining. I'm in a union but we don't have that kind of arrangement.
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Fidel Carson
I just wanted to update that we went ahead and answered 'yes' to the job search question since he meets his requirements with his exemptions. The claim was accepted without any issues! Thanks everyone for your help. Going to stick with the online filing when possible since it's less confusing, but good to know how to handle the phone system if needed again.
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Isaiah Sanders
•Great to hear! Thanks for reporting back with the outcome.
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