To clarify a point about reporting: When you file your weekly claim, you'll need to report that your employment ended. When asked why, select the most accurate option available - usually something like "discharged" or "fired" rather than "quit." ESD will then likely send you a questionnaire about the separation or schedule a phone interview. This is where you can explain the full situation with the lack of formal warnings and the context of promised hours that never materialized. For your job search, make sure you're focusing on positions that would be considered "suitable work" based on your skills and experience. The WorkSource training program is excellent - make sure ESD knows you're participating in this, as it demonstrates your commitment to reemployment. If you need immediate assistance with bills while waiting for this to resolve, ask WorkSource about emergency assistance programs that might be available to you.

Thank you all so much for the advice and support. I feel a little less panicked now. I have my weekly claim coming up in 2 days, so I'll report the job ending accurately and be prepared for questions. I'm going to try calling ESD first thing tomorrow, and if I can't get through, I might try that Claimyr service someone mentioned. I really can't afford to wait weeks for a decision without knowing what's happening. I'll also contact my WorkSource advisor tomorrow to see if they can provide any documentation about my participation in the training program that might help my case. I'll update here if I learn anything that might help others in a similar situation!

One additional note: when you do finally reach an agent, ask them to document in your file that you've been attempting to contact ESD regularly. This can be important if they try to say you were non-responsive to some request you never received. Also, make sure you have a clear and accurate record of your last employer, including the correct business name (sometimes the legal name is different from what employees call it), their ESD reference number if you have it, and exact dates of employment. Having these details ready can sometimes help them clear up issues on the spot. Keep in mind that adjudicators and regular ESD agents are different - regular agents can see what's causing the hold but often can't adjudicate the claim themselves. However, they CAN add notes to your file that the adjudicator will see, which is why being specific about your situation when you do reach someone is so important.

UPDATE: I finally got through to ESD this morning! Called about 40 times starting at exactly 8am. The agent confirmed my employer DID respond promptly (not the issue) but apparently there was a discrepancy between the reason for separation I listed (layoff) and some auto-categorization in their system that flagged it as "lack of work" which are technically different things in their system. The agent added detailed notes to my file and said an adjudicator should contact me within 3-5 business days. Fingers crossed this actually happens! Will update when I hear more.

My brother had similar situation last year with his claim. The IVR thing is not the problem usually. When he finally got through to someone they said his former employer was disputing something which put everything on hold but it didn't show up anywhere in his online account. So frustrating!! Hope you get answers soon!!

UPDATE: I finally got through to ESD this morning! Turns out there was an employer response they were waiting for that was holding everything up. The agent was able to override something in the system and release my payments. They said I should see deposits within 48 hours for all pending weeks. What a relief! Thanks everyone for your help figuring this out.

dont forget 2 look into rental assistance and utility help programs while waiting!! most counties have emergency programs 4 single parents. also food banks saved me when i was waiting on my claim last year

One more tip - download and save a copy of your determination letter and appeal confirmation. ESD's website can be glitchy, and you don't want to lose access to important documents. I take screenshots of everything now because I've had stuff disappear from my online account before.

my cousin works at a temp place and he just puts "no work available" when he files his weekly claim. maybe try that next time??

FINAL UPDATE: I used Claimyr this morning and got through to ESD in about 30 minutes! The agent was really helpful and found TWO problems: 1) The temp agency had reported my husband as having "quit" when he actually just wasn't given any more assignments. The agent corrected this and removed the disqualification. 2) They had miscalculated his base year by using 2025 Q1-Q4 instead of including the higher-paying Q4 2024. They're fixing this too and said his weekly benefit should go back up. The agent said both issues should be resolved within 72 hours and any missed payments will be back-paid. Such a relief! For anyone dealing with temp agency work, make sure you select "lack of work/no work available" not "voluntary leave" when filing weekly claims. And THANK YOU everyone for your help - this forum literally saved us from disaster.

Quick update on waiver processing times - I just had a meeting with the ESD overpayment unit supervisor yesterday. They're currently processing waivers from mid-July, so there's about a 7-month backlog. They've hired additional staff for review, but each waiver requires checking against both federal and state eligibility rules from the pandemic period, which involves manual review of documentation. Important note: Make sure your current contact information is updated in the system. They're sending requests for additional information by mail and email, and if you miss responding to these requests, your waiver could be denied by default.

After reading everyone's experiences, I think we need to recognize this is a systemic issue affecting thousands of people. The Covid benefit programs were chaotic, with changing guidance from both federal and state levels. While waiting for your waiver to be processed: 1. Request a formal hold on collections through eServices (as mentioned above) 2. Document all communications with ESD (dates, times, representative names) 3. Check your spam folder regularly for ESD communications 4. Contact your state representative if it's been over 4 months 5. Consider filing a formal appeal if collections are continuing despite a pending waiver The good news is that I've seen very few waiver denials so far - most are being approved, just very slowly.

Update: FINALLY got through to ESD today! Used the Claimyr service that was suggested here (thanks for that tip!) and was connected to an agent in about 30 minutes. The agent confirmed my appeal victory was in their system but said it hadn't been properly "implemented" yet. She put in a request to expedite the processing and said I should see all my backpay within 3-5 business days. She also explained that appeal decisions don't automatically trigger payments - a claims specialist has to manually review and release them. Apparently they're working through a backlog right now. Finger crossed I'll see the money soon! Will update when it hits my account.

FINAL UPDATE: The money hit my account this morning! All 8 weeks of backpay plus the current week. What a relief! Timeline for anyone searching in the future: - Appeal hearing: May 3 - Decision received: May 7 - Called and spoke to agent: May 18 - Payment received: May 23 So it took 16 days from decision to payment, but honestly I think it would have taken much longer if I hadn't called and had the agent manually expedite it. Thanks everyone for your help!

my cousin had this exact same problem and ESD ended up denying his backpay for weeks that were more than a month old even though he had a really good reason for not filing earlier. the whole system is designed to deny benefits!!! they make everything so complicated on purpose!!!

One thing nobody has mentioned yet - when you file for that November week, make sure you report ALL work and earnings accurately, including the temp work you did between October and November. If your earnings for any week exceed your weekly benefit amount, you won't receive benefits for that week, but you still need to report it all correctly. Also, depending on how long you worked at those temp jobs and how much you earned, it might affect your benefit year or weekly benefit amount. The system recalculates based on recent work history. Good luck with your claim! Let us know how it turns out.

Thanks everyone for the helpful responses! I'm going to gather my documentation and see if taking the itemized deduction or the tax credit makes more sense in my situation. Might talk to a tax professional too just to make sure I'm doing it right. I'll update here if I learn anything useful that might help others in the same boat.

Wait i just thought of something... did u get a letter from ESD showing how much u paid back? make sure u have that for ur tax records!!!!

I just checked my eServices and noticed there's actually a questionnaire that was added yesterday! Thanks for mentioning that - I wouldn't have thought to look. Filling it out right now and hoping that helps move things along. Still worried about the timeline but at least I know what to expect now. Thanks everyone for the advice!

Hang in there. I remember when I first applied for unemployment after losing my restaurant job it was SO confusing. Just remember to keep filing those weekly claims no matter what. My cousin forgot to file for two weeks during his adjudication period and he never got paid for those weeks even though his claim was eventually approved. The system is super strict about that weekly filing requirement.