One more thing - if you're getting close to exhausting your benefits and still haven't found work, look into other assistance programs like SNAP or local food banks. Don't wait until your benefits run out completely.

I'm in a similar situation - lost my manufacturing job after 6 years and just filed for unemployment. Reading through all these responses is really helpful but also kind of scary knowing there's a hard 26 week cutoff. I'm planning to be aggressive with my job search from day one. Has anyone here had success finding work in manufacturing after being on unemployment? I'm wondering if I should also look into other industries or stick with what I know. The job market seems pretty competitive right now.

This has been such an educational thread! I'm fairly new to Washington (moved here about 6 months ago from Oregon) and I've been totally confused about this whole system. In Oregon, employees DO contribute to unemployment insurance, so when I saw the PFML deduction on my Washington paystub, I just assumed it was the same thing with a different name. Now I understand that Washington's UI system is completely employer-funded, which actually makes me feel better about having filed for benefits when my previous job ended due to company restructuring. My former supervisor made some comment about "hoping I wouldn't stay on unemployment too long" and I thought she was just being supportive, but now I realize she was probably worried about their experience rating! It's honestly kind of frustrating that this basic information about how our unemployment system works isn't more readily available or clearly explained. I had to stumble across this community discussion to finally understand something that directly affects my rights as a worker. Thanks to everyone who shared their knowledge here - especially those with HR experience who broke down the technical details about tax rates and experience ratings.

This thread has been incredibly enlightening! I've been working in Washington for about 2 years and just like so many others here, I completely misunderstood how the system works. I always thought that PFML deduction was for unemployment insurance and that I was basically "prepaying" for potential future benefits. Learning that UI is 100% employer-funded actually explains a lot about my last job situation. When our department got restructured and several of us were laid off, my manager kept emphasizing how we should "quickly find new opportunities" and made it sound like filing for unemployment would somehow burden our former coworkers. Now I realize she was probably just worried about the company's experience rating affecting their future tax rates! It's honestly pretty frustrating that this fundamental information about how our safety net works isn't clearly communicated. Like others have mentioned, this should definitely be covered in employee orientations or at least explained somewhere obvious on the ESD website. How are we supposed to make informed decisions about our benefits if we don't even understand how they're funded? Thanks to everyone who took the time to explain the technical details - especially the difference between the immediate employer payments into the trust fund vs. the potential future rate increases based on claims history. This is exactly the kind of practical knowledge that workers need but rarely get access to!

Just wanted to add one more tip that helped me: I kept a detailed log of every single phone call with ESD, including the date, time, name of the person I spoke with, and what they told me. This turned out to be crucial evidence because I could point to specific instances where I received conflicting information from different ESD representatives. The OAH judge seemed particularly interested in this documentation.

Wow, thank you so much for sharing this detailed breakdown! I'm just starting my unemployment claim process and honestly had no idea overpayments were even a thing. This is both terrifying and incredibly helpful. I'm definitely going to start documenting everything from day one - screenshots of my weekly filings, keeping all my pay stubs, and logging any phone calls. Better to be overprepared than caught off guard like so many people here seem to have been. One question - you mentioned citing specific RCW statutes in your appeals. How did you figure out which ones were relevant? Did you research them yourself or get help from somewhere? I want to make sure I know what to reference if I ever end up in this situation. Again, huge congrats on your victory! Stories like this give me hope that the system isn't completely hopeless, even if it's clearly designed to make people give up.

This thread is absolutely incredible and should be required reading for anyone dealing with ESD adjudication! I'm currently in week 2 of my adjudication process and had been checking the main dashboard religiously but never knew about the separate secure message center. Just logged in after reading all these comments and found a questionnaire about my job separation that was sent 3 days ago - I would have completely missed this if not for this discussion! Filing it out immediately. Angel, your success story is so inspiring and gives all of us hope that there really is light at the end of this tunnel. It's criminal that ESD doesn't send email alerts for these critical forms when people's livelihoods depend on them. Thank you to everyone who shared their experiences here - you're literally saving people from months of unnecessary delays. I'll definitely update once I hear back on my claim!

This thread has been a lifesaver! I'm new to this community and currently in week 2 of adjudication after being laid off from my job in the healthcare industry. Reading everyone's experiences here, especially about the secure message center, has been eye-opening. I immediately went and checked mine after reading through all these comments and thankfully haven't missed any questionnaires yet, but I had no idea that section even existed! Angel, congratulations on getting your resolution and back pay - what a relief that must have been after 6 weeks of stress. Your story really shows how one small missed detail can cause massive delays. It's absolutely unacceptable that ESD doesn't send email notifications for such critical communications when people are already struggling financially. I'm going to be checking that message center religiously now, along with continuing my weekly claims. Thank you to everyone who shared their experiences - this community support is filling a huge gap that ESD should be addressing themselves. Will definitely update here if my situation changes!

I've been through something similar - was self-employed for about 18 months and worried I wouldn't qualify. The most important thing is checking your base period wages in your ESD account first. I was surprised to find I had enough W-2 wages from my previous job to qualify, even though it felt like forever ago. The benefit amount was lower than I hoped since it was based on older wages, but it definitely helped bridge the gap while I looked for new work. Also, be prepared for the adjudication process to take a few weeks - they'll want to verify your work history and may ask for tax documents showing your self-employment income. Don't let the complexity discourage you from applying though!

I'm in almost the exact same situation - been self-employed for about 2.5 years and work has completely dried up. Reading through all these responses has been really helpful, especially learning about checking the base period wages first. I had no idea that was even a thing! I worked part-time at a marketing agency while getting my freelance business off the ground, so hopefully those wages are still in my base period. The Claimyr service sounds interesting too - I've been dreading trying to call Washington ESD because everyone says it's impossible to get through. Has anyone here actually used it recently? I'm willing to pay a reasonable fee if it means I can actually talk to a real person about my situation instead of spending days redialing busy signals.