NOBODY AT ESD KNOWS WHAT THEY'RE DOING!! I had the exact same problem and every agent told me something different. First one said it was normal, second one said my claim was flagged for fraud review, third one said it was a system error. Took THREE WEEKS to get my money and I almost got evicted! ESD is completely broken, incompetent, and useless. They should all be fired!!!

Just wanted to follow up - did you get your issue resolved? For anyone else experiencing this issue in the future, there's actually a formal process for these $0.00 payment errors. You need to: 1) Contact ESD and specifically request a "payment recalculation review" 2) Have them check if there's a "wage validation exception" or a "payment processing exception" 3) Ask them to verify your monetary eligibility hasn't changed In about 80% of cases, this is a simple system error that can be fixed within 48 hours once properly identified. The other 20% involve some type of eligibility question that needs to be resolved.

Quick tip for the future - take a photo of your timecard or write down your hours at the end of each shift. Makes weekly claims so much easier when you have part-time work. I learned this the hard way!

just wanted to say good luck! partial unemployment is confusing at first but gets easier

I wouldn't get too excited yet. My claim said "processing" for THREE WEEKS before finally changing to "paid" and then another week before I actually saw the money! The whole ESD system is designed to frustrate people into giving up. Also, be prepared that they might approve some weeks and deny others - that's what they did to me because of some stupid technicality about job search requirements even though I DID submit them. ESD is the WORST state agency by far!!

UPDATE: Just checked again this morning and now TWO more weeks have changed to "processing"! Still have two that say "pending" but definitely movement in the right direction. Thanks everyone for your help and suggestions!

Update: My identity was verified! Took about 36 hours but everything's back to normal now. Thanks everyone for the reassurance. I was panicking for nothing I guess. Still wish they'd given some kind of heads up that this could happen randomly though.

This is good info for everyone to know - ESD can request identity verification at ANY point during your claim year, not just at the beginning. Pro tip: keep digital copies of your ID documents in a secure location so you can quickly upload them if asked. This helps avoid payment delays. Also, make sure your phone number is up-to-date in your ESD account because sometimes they'll text verification codes if they need additional verification.

Don't wait for them to ask!! Upload EVERYTHING proactively! My adjudication dragged on forever because I was waiting for them to tell me what documents they needed. Finally I just uploaded everything I could think of - doctor's notes, termination letter, final paystub, everything. Magically my claim was approved 3 days later. They won't tell you what they need, you have to guess!!!

has anyone actually been paid yet in 2025? my brothers been waiting since January 3rd and hasn't seen a penny. i think the whole system is broken this year

I went through EXACTLY this in December! Had a job offer Dec 2 but didn't start until Jan 8. I kept filing weekly claims and doing my job searches (even though it felt pointless). The ESD person told me job searches are still required until your actual start date because technically offers can fall through. On my first day of work, I filed my final claim reporting my hours worked that week, checked the "returned to full-time work" box, and that was it. System automatically closed my claim after that. Hope this helps!

To summarize the correct procedure that your son-in-law should follow: 1. Continue filing weekly claims until he begins working on March 17th 2. Continue completing 3 job search activities each week and reporting them (unless he gets an official exemption) 3. For the week that includes March 17th, file a claim and report: - The exact hours worked that week - His gross earnings (before taxes) for those hours, even if not yet paid - Answer "Yes" to "Did you return to full-time work?" This ensures he receives all benefits he's entitled to while avoiding overpayment issues. After filing that final claim, his claim will be automatically closed when he indicates he's returned to full-time work. Important: If he works partial hours during his first week (starting mid-week on March 17th), he may still be eligible for partial benefits for that week depending on his earnings.

wait im confused...... do u actually have to keep doing job searches if u already have a part time job??? that seems weird

Just wanted to update everyone who commented. I called ESD this morning (took forever but finally got through) and they confirmed I should: 1. Keep filing weekly claims and report all earnings accurately 2. Continue doing 3 job search activities weekly 3. The redetermination will still be processed regardless of my part-time job 4. I might get partial benefits if my earnings are low enough Basically exactly what most of you said! They also told me my redetermination should be completed "within the next 2-3 weeks" but I'm not holding my breath given how long it's already been. Thanks everyone for the helpful advice!

Make sure u find out EXACTLY what week(s) they're questioning for the "able and available" issue. My husband's case was only about a specific 2-week period when he had limited his hours due to childcare, not his whole claim. If u know the specific dates it makes preparing way easier. btw do u have a copy of his weekly claim certifications? Those are super important since that's what they're usually comparing to the initial application to find "inconsistencies"

One more thing - if you're preparing for an "able and available" hearing, get familiar with WAC 192-170-010 through 192-170-070. These are the Washington Administrative Code sections that define what "able and available" actually means. Judges reference these specific codes during hearings. You can find them online by searching "WAC unemployment able and available". Also, hearings are typically held by phone right now. Make sure you're in a quiet place with good reception, have all your documents organized and labeled, and take notes during the proceeding.

Update: I took everyone's advice and did multiple things at once. I submitted a reconsideration request with all my documentation AND managed to get through to an ESD agent using that Claimyr service someone mentioned. The agent confirmed it was exactly what several of you suggested - my employer's acquisition caused a mismatch in their system between the FEIN on my previous claim and the current one, even though it's essentially the same company. The agent was able to note this in the system and link the records properly. My claim status just changed from "disqualified" to "processing" this morning! Thank you all so much for the help and advice. For anyone dealing with similar issues, definitely try to talk to a live agent if possible - they can fix things that the automated system gets confused by.

Congrats!! So happy you got it fixed! The ESD system is such a nightmare sometimes. I'm still waiting on mine to get processed... going on 3 weeks now 😩

Don't expect anything to happen QUICKLY with ESD! Even if you're 100% eligible, if your claim hits adjudication, they'll make you WAIT and WAIT while they "review" your case. Meanwhile your landlord doesn't care about ESD's timeline!!! The whole system is broken!

One last thing to check: look at your monetary determination letter (should be in your eServices account). This shows your benefit year end date. As long as you're within your benefit year, have available benefit weeks remaining, and haven't earned wages that would establish a new claim, your benefits should continue at the previously established weekly benefit amount after reporting the brief employment period.