My sister works for ESD (not speaking officially obvs) and she says ppl get confused about this all the time. The 6x rule is real but its actually about "requalifying" after you've already received benefits in your benefit year and had a break in your claim. For a totally new benefit year after your old one expired, its all about the 680 hrs in your base year. Also if your hours got reduced, def look into partial unemployment! You can sometimes get benefits if you're working part time depending on how much you earn compared to your weekly benefit amount.

Thanks everyone for the responses! Just to update - I called ESD (used that Claimyr service someone mentioned and got through in about 35 minutes). The agent confirmed I need BOTH the 680 hours AND earnings of at least 6x my previous weekly benefit amount. She checked my records and said I've earned enough to meet the 6x requirement but I'm still about 120 hours short of the 680 hours. So I'll need to keep working for another month or so before I can file a new claim. She also said I might qualify for partial unemployment now since my hours were cut significantly, but I'd need to file a new claim to find out for sure. I'm going to stick it out a bit longer to hit that 680 hour mark first.

Don't forget that you CAN appeal if they end up denying your claim! I had to appeal my adjudication decision and won at the hearing. The Office of Administrative Hearings (OAH) is separate from ESD and actually gives you a fair shot.

Update from my previous comment: I checked with a colleague who works directly with ESD, and there's currently a backlog in construction industry claims specifically. There were several large layoffs in the sector this quarter, and they're reviewing employer tax compliance more carefully for construction companies. This likely explains your extended wait time compared to claims from other industries.

For anyone else experiencing this situation, here's what's happening: When ESD approves an overpayment waiver, two things occur: 1. The remaining balance of your overpayment is forgiven (reduced to zero) 2. Any money you already paid toward that overpayment is refunded to you The refund typically processes through ESD's payment system before the determination letter is generated by their notification system. This creates a situation where claimants often receive money before they receive an explanation. If you can't access your online account, it's likely because your claim status has changed, which sometimes triggers a security protocol requiring re-verification. You can request a new access code by mail through the SAW (Secure Access Washington) system. To confirm your waiver status without waiting for the letter, call ESD at 800-318-6022. Current wait times are extremely long (1-3 hours), so call early in the morning right when they open at 8:00 AM.

I forgot to mention - check your spam/junk mail folder! My determination letter got caught in my email spam filter. Also, after I finally got through to ESD, my online account started working again about 48 hours later. Apparently they have to manually reset something after a waiver approval.

This timing difference is actually normal with ACH transfers. First payments are often processed differently (sometimes as a test transaction) than subsequent payments. What's happening is that ESD has initiated the payment, but it's still in the banking system pipeline. Few things to be aware of: 1. Most banks don't process ACH transfers on weekends or holidays 2. Some banks hold deposits for 24-48 hours before showing them as pending 3. ESD processes payments in batches, not individually If it's been less than 3 business days, I wouldn't worry yet. If it goes longer than that, then you should contact ESD to verify the payment was properly processed. You can check your payment history in eServices under "UI Claim" and look at the Payments tab to see the exact date it was processed.

Quick update - my payment from Monday just hit my account this morning. It took exactly 2 business days as others have mentioned. Hope yours comes through soon!

Whatever you do, DON'T LOSE YOUR COOL during the hearing!!! I got frustrated when ESD kept interrupting me and started arguing, and the judge basically shut me down after that. Even if they say things that aren't true, stay calm and wait your turn to respond. It's REALLY hard but so important.

btw if u win do they pay u all the back benefits right away? i'm curious about this too