Bottom line: File immediately after your last day of work, report severance honestly, keep filing weekly claims, and don't expect any benefits until severance ends. The system works, it's just not intuitive.

Just went through this exact situation last year. Filed my claim the day after my last work day while still receiving 6 weeks severance. Washington ESD processed everything during the severance period, so my benefits started immediately the week after severance ended. No gap, no delays. The key is getting your claim established early - don't wait until you're desperate and need the money right away.

Bottom line - file your claim, be honest about what happened, and don't assume you won't qualify. Washington ESD deals with these situations all the time and they're pretty good at distinguishing between genuine misconduct and isolated incidents with valid explanations.

I went through something very similar about 6 months ago. Got terminated for being late 4 times over 3 months due to various legitimate issues (sick child, car breakdown, etc.). I was really stressed about whether I'd qualify since I was technically fired, but Washington ESD approved my claim without any issues. The fact that you had valid reasons for each incident and weren't formally disciplined beforehand really works in your favor. They understand that life happens and occasional tardiness with legitimate explanations isn't the same as willful misconduct. I'd definitely recommend filing as soon as possible - even if there's any uncertainty, you want to get your claim date established. The worst they can do is say no, but from what you've described, I think you have a solid case. Don't let the termination scare you away from applying for benefits you're likely entitled to.

I'm in a similar situation - 4 weeks in adjudication and starting to panic about bills. Reading through all these responses, it sounds like there are multiple paths to try: calling right at 8am for hardship prioritization, contacting state reps, or the governor's office for severe cases. What's frustrating is how inconsistent the system seems to be. Some people wait 2 weeks, others wait months for identical situations. I think I'm going to try the early morning calling strategy first, then escalate to my state representative if I can't get through. Thanks everyone for sharing your experiences - at least now I know I'm not alone in this nightmare!

I've been dealing with a similar situation and wanted to share what finally worked for me. After 5 weeks in adjudication, I used a combination approach: I called the ESD customer service line using the callback feature on their website (took about 2 hours to get a callback, but way better than sitting on hold), and simultaneously submitted a request through my state representative's constituent services. The ESD agent was able to identify that my claim was flagged for additional review due to a discrepancy in my work history dates, even though nothing showed as missing in my online account. They expedited it that same day. The key thing I learned is that there are often invisible issues holding up claims that only show up when an agent actually looks at your file. Don't give up on trying multiple channels - the squeaky wheel really does get the grease with ESD. Hang in there, and definitely emphasize your hardship situation when you do get through to someone.

Update: IT WORKED!!! Just got my determination letter today - claim APPROVED and all my backpay will be deposited next week. Total time from emailing my legislators to approval was just 3 days. I honestly can't believe how fast it happened after months of nothing. For anyone else trying this route, I emailed all three of my district representatives (both house reps and the senator). The senator's office responded first, within hours, but all three offices eventually replied saying they'd help. I'm literally crying right now thinking about being able to catch up on rent and bills. This forum has been a lifesaver - thank you all for the support!

This is incredibly helpful, thank you for sharing! I've been stuck in adjudication for 8 weeks now and was starting to lose hope. I had no idea that contacting state legislators was even an option - I thought they only dealt with big policy issues, not individual cases like this. Just to clarify - when you say you emailed them about your "financial situation," did you include specific dollar amounts for things like rent, utilities, etc? I'm trying to figure out how detailed to be without making the email too long. Also, did you mention how many times you'd already tried calling ESD directly? I'm definitely going to try this approach. At this point I have nothing to lose and everything to gain. Thanks again for giving those of us in adjudication hell some actual hope!

Has anyone tried uploading from a different browser? Sometimes these government websites work better with Internet Explorer or Edge instead of Chrome.

Just wanted to follow up and say thanks to everyone for the advice. I ended up using Claimyr to talk to someone at Washington ESD and they confirmed the upload feature is having issues. They walked me through the manual entry process and it's actually not that bad. Also learned about some other features in the system I didn't know about.