Washington Unemployment
CommunityGovernment Services
Can't reach Washington Unemployment? Claimyr calls for you, so you don't have to wait on hold.
Claimyr is a pay-as-you-go service. We do not charge a recurring subscription.
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
- Forward a call to your phone with reduced hold time
- Give you free callbacks if the ESD drops your call
Ask the community...
- DO post questions about your issues.
- 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 :)
ESD hearing scheduled for misconduct termination - will poor performance affect my UI claim?
I just got fired on Jan 15th 2025 and my employer is claiming both willful misconduct AND poor performance as reasons for termination. Got my hearing notice for Feb 11th and I'm freaking out! Does anyone know if I can still qualify for unemployment if they're using both reasons? My supervisor kept changing performance targets every month making it impossible to meet them, then wrote me up for "insubordination" when I questioned the fairness of it. I worked there 3 years with no previous issues until we got this new manager 6 months ago. What evidence should I bring to the hearing? Has anyone won their case with similar circumstances?
Join the conversation
ESD finally approved my claim - when will money hit my account? Tuesday deposit?
After weeks of stress and waiting, my unemployment claim finally got approved yesterday! The ESD site says 'Paid' on my weekly claims but I haven't seen any money in my bank account yet. Does anyone know how long it takes for the funds to actually show up? Is it always on Tuesdays like I've heard from a friend? I've got rent due at the end of the week and really counting on this deposit coming through ASAP. First time dealing with unemployment so I'm clueless about the payment schedule.
Join the conversation
Another thing to check - make sure your bank account info was entered 100% correctly in the ESD system. I've seen cases where people had a single digit wrong in their account number, and the payment bounced back to ESD. When that happens, they have to reissue the payment, which adds another week to the process. Login to eServices and verify your direct deposit information right away.
Thanks for this reminder! I just triple-checked all my banking info in the system and everything looks correct. Routing number and account number both match what's on my bank statements.
Can I qualify for ESD benefits if I quit a new job after leaving a contract position?
I'm in a tough spot and could use some advice from people who know the ESD system. I worked a 5-month contract position that ended February 10th. After searching for a while, I just started a new job last week that's honestly awful - the pay is significantly less than what I need to cover my bills and the hours are terrible. It's already affecting my mental health. I've heard you need to be at a job for 6 months minimum before you can qualify for unemployment. Is that true? I've been actively job hunting for about a month with no luck finding something appropriate. I'd much rather be working than collecting benefits, but I don't think I can stick with this new position much longer. If I quit, would I be eligible for any ESD benefits based on my previous contract work? Or am I just stuck with this terrible job until I find something else?
Join the conversation
Has anyone mentioned that if you go ahead and quit this job you should do it BEFORE hitting the 680 hour mark in your base year??? Those hours carry over to your next claim period and if u quit without good cause you lose them!!!
That's a good point about hours potentially being lost if there's a disqualification, but the concern about the specific 680 hour mark isn't quite accurate. Washington's minimum qualifying hours for a valid claim is 680 hours in your base year, but all hours worked in the base period count toward benefit calculation regardless of how many there are. There's no benefit to quitting before hitting a specific number of hours - what matters is the determination about whether the quit was for good cause.
How long after winning ESD appeal will I receive backpay for all claimed weeks?
Finally won my appeal after battling with ESD for 3 months!! The judge ruled in my favor last Wednesday (got the decision letter yesterday) but now I'm wondering how long I'll have to wait to actually get paid for all those weeks I've been claiming while in appeal status? That's 12 weeks of benefits I'm owed! Has anyone gone through this process recently? Do I need to contact ESD to let them know I won, or will the Office of Administrative Hearings communicate that automatically? My bills are seriously piling up and I need to know when I can expect this money.
Join the conversation
Sometimes if you email your state representative they can help speed things up. I was waiting for weeks after winning my appeal and nothing was happening. I emailed my district rep, her office contacted ESD, and suddenly my payments appeared three days later. Worth a try if it drags on too long.
This is excellent advice. Legislative inquiries are often prioritized by ESD. If you go this route, be sure to include your claim ID number, contact information, and a brief explanation of your situation in your email to your representative.
UPDATE: Just wanted to let everyone know that I got my backpay! It took exactly 17 days from when I received the appeal decision. I did call ESD twice during that time - first call they just said it was "in process" but after the second call it seemed to move faster. Thanks everyone for your advice and support!
That's great news! Thanks for coming back to update us. It always helps to know how these timelines work out in real situations.
Filing taxes without 1099-G when ESD hasn't paid benefits yet - what's the right move?
Hey everyone, I'm in a weird situation with my taxes and ESD. I applied for unemployment in mid-December (about 6 weeks ago), but my claim is still stuck in processing and I haven't received a single payment yet. Tax season is here and I'm wondering - should I wait to file my taxes until I get a 1099-G from ESD, or is it okay to file now since I technically didn't receive any unemployment income in 2024? I'm worried about having to amend later if benefits finally come through, but also don't want to delay my refund. Has anyone dealt with this before? Would really appreciate some guidance!
Join the conversation
dont forget to keep doing ur weekly claims even while waiting for the initial claim to process!!!! i messed up and missed 2 weeks of filing while waiting for my claim to be approved and they wouldnt let me backfile those weeks even tho my claim was still pending!!
Oh wow, thank you for this reminder! I've been filing every week, but almost skipped last Sunday because I was so frustrated with the whole process. Glad I didn't now!
One more tax tip since we're on the subject: When you do start receiving unemployment benefits, remember that the first $10,200 of unemployment benefits are NO LONGER tax-free at the federal level. That was a one-time exception for 2020 during COVID. For 2024 and 2025, all unemployment benefits are fully taxable as income. Many people don't realize this and end up with a surprise tax bill.
Great point. The $10,200 exclusion was specifically for tax year 2020 only. Now all unemployment compensation is fully taxable at the federal level, though some states don't tax it at the state level. Washington residents don't need to worry about state income tax, but federal taxes still apply to 100% of unemployment benefits received.
Carmen Diaz
Yes I did win! They decided it wasn't misconduct just regular attendance issues. I got the decision in the mail about 10 days after the hearing but it also showed up in my eServices account after about a week.
0 coins
Nia Thompson
One last piece of advice: prepare a concise opening and closing statement for your hearing. About 2-3 minutes each, focusing on: 1. Your work history (3 years, previously good performance) 2. The timeline of when problems began (coinciding with new manager) 3. Your attempts to meet changing expectations 4. Why the
0 coins