To answer your follow-up question - you should continue filing weekly claims until your earnings exceed your weekly benefit amount. When you report full-time work or earnings higher than your benefit amount, the system will automatically stop your claim. This is important because if your job doesn't work out during the first few weeks (which happens sometimes), you won't have to restart your claim from scratch. Once you're stable in your new job, your claim will just become inactive automatically.

Congratulations on the new job! Just to reinforce what others have said - yes, you absolutely must report those work hours even though you haven't been paid yet. The weekly claim asks about work PERFORMED during the claim week, not when payment is received. Since you worked 40 hours at $18/hour ($720 gross), that's definitely above your $624 weekly benefit amount, so you likely won't receive unemployment benefits for that week. But still file your claim and report everything accurately - this protects you from any potential overpayment issues later. For future reference, keep filing weekly claims until you're confident the job is stable. If something happens and you lose the job in the first few weeks, you'll be able to continue receiving benefits without having to restart your entire claim. Good luck with the new position!

I've been dealing with Washington ESD for over a year now and "processed pending payment" has become a familiar sight on my account. What I've learned is that this status basically means you're in the queue - your claim has been approved and verified, but you're waiting for their payment system to actually release the funds. It's frustrating because the timing can be unpredictable. Sometimes it's 2 days, sometimes it's 5 days. I think it depends on their processing volume and whether your claim gets selected for one of their random quality reviews. The good news is that I've never seen this status result in a denial - it always eventually switches to "paid." My advice is to keep checking daily but try not to stress too much about it. The money will come through, it's just Washington ESD being Washington ESD with their slow bureaucratic processes.

I just wanted to add my experience since I went through this exact same thing about 3 months ago. When I saw "processed pending payment" for the first time, I immediately thought I had done something wrong or that there was an issue with my claim. I ended up calling Washington ESD (after many attempts) and the agent explained that this status actually means they've completed their review and approved your weekly claim, but the payment is just waiting in their system to be released. She told me that payments are typically released in batches throughout the week, and sometimes there are delays due to system maintenance or high processing volumes. Mine took 4 business days to go from "processed pending payment" to actually showing up in my bank account. The agent also mentioned that this status is much better than seeing "pending" or "under review" because it means you've already passed their eligibility check. I know the waiting is nerve-wracking when you need that money, but try to hang in there - it should resolve soon!

Just wanted to add my experience for anyone else going through this - I had a fact-finding interview for reduced hours back in October and it took exactly 3 weeks to get my decision. The key thing that helped speed up my case was having all my documentation ready - pay stubs showing the hour reduction, any written communication from my employer about the change, and exact dates of when everything happened. ESD seems to process cases faster when they have clear evidence right from the start. Also, like others mentioned, keep filing your weekly claims even while waiting! I almost stopped filing because I thought it was pointless, but you definitely need those claims on file to get your backpay once approved.

Just wanted to share that I went through something very similar last year when my employer cut my hours from 38 to 18 per week. My fact-finding interview was on a Tuesday and I got my approval decision the following Monday - so about 6 business days total. I think the key factors that helped speed things up were: 1) My employer didn't contest the claim, and 2) I had all my documentation organized (old schedule vs new schedule, pay stubs, etc.). The interviewer seemed impressed that I came prepared with exact dates and details. One tip I'd give is to emphasize during your interview that this was entirely the employer's decision and that you had no choice in the matter. ESD needs to establish that you're unemployed through no fault of your own. Sounds like you have a strong case since the hour reduction was so drastic and without warning!

I tried calling Washington ESD about this exact question last month and could never get through. Finally used that Claimyr service someone mentioned earlier and actually got to talk to a real person. They were able to look up my wage history and confirm I didn't have enough W-2 wages to qualify. At least now I know for sure instead of wondering.

UPDATE: I dug through my tax records and found I actually had more W-2 wages than I remembered from that temp agency work. Going to apply this week and see what happens. Thanks everyone for the advice!

I went through something very similar back in December! My adjudication date changed three times after I contacted my state representative's office, and I was convinced I had somehow messed up my claim. Turns out it was actually the system updating as my case moved through different stages of review. The final date they gave me was accurate - I got my determination letter exactly on that date and was approved with full backpay. The key thing is to keep filing your weekly claims no matter what, because if you miss those you can't get backpay for those weeks even if approved. Hang in there, the date changes are usually a good sign that things are moving!

I'm new to this whole unemployment process and reading through all these experiences is both scary and reassuring! I filed my claim about two weeks ago and it went straight to adjudication. I've been panicking thinking I did something wrong, but seeing that this seems pretty normal is helping calm my nerves. Emily, your situation sounds exactly like what I'm going through - the waiting and anxiety about rent and bills is just overwhelming. I'm definitely going to try calling the governor's office based on what everyone is saying here. It's so helpful to have a community where people share their real experiences instead of just the confusing official ESD website. Thank you all for being so open about your struggles and successes!