Just a quick update - I saw your question about whether they asked for proof of income for the payment plan. In my case, they didn't require documentation upfront, but they did ask about my current income and expenses during the phone call to determine what monthly payment would be reasonable. If you're struggling to get through on the phone, I really do recommend trying Claimyr. It saved me literally days of frustration trying to reach someone at ESD.

One more thing to consider: if you believe the overpayment was due to an ESD error rather than anything you did wrong, you can request a waiver. According to WAC 192-220-030, ESD may waive an overpayment if it would be against "equity and good conscience" to require repayment. This is separate from an appeal (which challenges whether the overpayment exists at all) and is worth looking into if you truly couldn't have prevented the overpayment situation.

did u check if theres legal aid that can help?? sometimes theres free lawyers for unemployment stuff but u gotta apply quick!!!

When you get your continuance (and I'm confident you will), the first thing you should do is request all records ESD has about your case through a records request. This will show you exactly what they're basing their overpayment determination on. For SharedWork specifically, make sure you get copies of all the employer certifications and your weekly claim records. The most common issue I've seen is that ESD's system doesn't properly record the reduced hours under SharedWork and then incorrectly flags it as an overpayment. Having those records will be crucial for your case.

EVERYONE here is forgetting the most IMPORTANT part!!!! Even if you file late, you can request a BACKDATING EXCEPTION due to "good cause"! ESD policy allows them to backdate more than one week in certain circumstances. Being confused about the filing process could count. YOU HAVE TO ASK FOR THIS SPECIFICALLY when you talk to them! Don't just accept that you've lost money!!!!

Update: I filed my claim today! The process was pretty straightforward. I explained my situation about the upcoming trip in the comments section, though I'm not sure if anyone reads those. I'll make sure to report that I'm unavailable during my travel days when I file my weekly claim. Thanks everyone for pushing me to file immediately rather than waiting. Even if I lose a couple of weeks of benefits, that's better than losing all three weeks plus the coming week. Lesson learned about not delaying with ESD!

Another thing to check: did you have any vacation or severance pay when you were laid off? Sometimes people don't realize that certain types of separation pay can affect your claim filing date. If you received severance that extended into January, you might have a case for adjusting your effective date of claim. Worth asking about if you speak with an ESD representative.

anyone else think its crazy that we have to become unemployment system experts just to not get screwed over?? like why isnt there a calculator on the esd website that would tell you "hey maybe wait 3 weeks to file and you'll get $200 more per week" 🙄

another thing - i think someone else kinda said this but make sure u keep filing claims until ur working full time (32+ hrs). u can still get partial benefits if ur hours are low at first

Just to add one more important detail - when reporting your work activity, you'll need to enter your hours and gross earnings (before any deductions). For the earnings, use your hourly rate × hours worked that day if you don't have a pay stub yet. Remember that ESD considers you to be "unemployed" for that week if you work less than full-time hours AND your earnings are less than your weekly benefit amount + $5 (or 15% of your weekly benefit, whichever is greater). So with only one day of work, you should still receive a significant portion of your benefits for that week.