I know this doesn't help with your current situation but my brother has been roofing for 12 years and he got tired of the winter layoffs so he now works for a company that does interior renovations during winter months. Maybe look into something like that for next year so you don't have to deal with ESD's ridiculous standby rules? Just a thought... good luck either way!

Just wanted to check back - did you get any resolution to your issues? Were you able to get the standby extended or get your identity verification processed?

Something else to consider is taxes! Even though your income won't affect his benefits, remember that unemployment is taxable income. So when you file taxes next year, your combined income might put you in a higher tax bracket. Not saying don't take the job! Just something to be aware of so you're not surprised at tax time.

Just to follow up on what others have correctly stated - Washington ESD only looks at the individual claimant's income when determining eligibility and weekly benefit amounts. Your employment status and income have no direct impact on your husband's unemployment benefits. The system is designed this way specifically to encourage families to maintain or increase household income during periods of partial employment. Taking the job will simply add to your total household income rather than replacing his benefits. One additional note: if your husband finds part-time work, he may still qualify for partial unemployment benefits if he earns less than his weekly benefit amount. In that case, ESD would deduct a portion of his earnings from his benefit (not your earnings).

Update on my situation - I took everyone's advice and reported both job offers on my weekly claim yesterday. I got a notification this morning that my claim is now under review and benefits are on hold. Great. Now I'm completely screwed if I don't get this resolved before rent is due. Has anyone successfully navigated adjudication quickly? I'm starting to panic.

I just wanted to follow up - did you get this resolved? I've seen similar situations get cleared up within 7-10 days when all the documentation is properly submitted. If you're still stuck in adjudication, you might want to try contacting your state representative's office. They often have dedicated staff who can expedite ESD issues.

my cousin said u have to do the job search activities for all those back weeks too did anyone else have to do that??

Quick update - I called this morning (got through surprisingly quickly) and the agent confirmed I need to wait until Sunday to file my first claim after restart. She also helped me file for the 4 backdated weeks during my appeal! I had to verbally provide job search activities for each week, so I'm glad I kept rough notes of places I applied even when I wasn't getting paid. Thanks everyone for the help! Hope this thread helps someone else navigate the confusing restart process after winning an appeal.

lol my friend had his dog's name show up on his claim last year!!!! 🐕 ESD system is sooooo broken haha. glad u got it fixed tho

Update: I called the number today and successfully filed my weekly claim by phone! It took about 10 minutes going through all the questions, and I felt much more confident that everything was processed correctly. The automated system confirmed my claim was received at the end. Such a relief after all the website problems!

Quick update based on what others have shared: The success rate for Governor's office escalations has been dropping lately. State representatives and senators often have more direct channels to ESD. If you don't hear back within 10 business days, I'd recommend contacting both your state rep AND trying the Claimyr service mentioned above, as these are currently the most effective routes to resolving stuck claims in my experience.

Just wanted to share that I finally got my call back yesterday! They apologized for the delay and said they're prioritizing cases based on hardship level and claim date. The rep asked if I had immediate hardship (like eviction risk) and when I said yes, they expedited my case. Maybe call the Governor's office back and specifically mention your rent situation? That might bump you up in priority.

make sure u keep filing ur weekly claims while u wait!!! my cousin didnt do that and when he won his appeal he only got paid for the weeks he actually filed!

Update us when you get your decision! Based on what you've described (medical issues + pivot program + employer no-show), I think you have a strong case. The key factor in voluntary quit cases is whether you had "good cause" to leave, and medical inability to perform required duties often meets that standard. The appeal decision will include detailed reasoning from the judge about why they ruled the way they did. This is actually really helpful because even if you don't win, the decision will explain exactly what evidence was missing or what standards weren't met. That gives you a clear roadmap if you need to appeal to the Commissioner Review Office (the next level of appeal).

One additional tip: For the general recruiter call, make sure you note what types of positions were discussed, even if they were hypothetical. This strengthens your documentation by showing the call was specific to your job search rather than just a general chat.

Thanks everyone for the helpful answers! I'll continue logging both types of recruiter interactions but make sure my documentation is much more detailed. This community has been so helpful - the ESD website doesn't really spell out all these nuances.

i dont get why they always have to make things so complicated?? like why close one claim just to open another one?? thats where all these problems start! the esd system is stuck in like 1995 or something

UPDATE: I finally got through to someone at ESD this morning! Called right at 8:00 AM and only had to wait about 45 minutes. The agent confirmed exactly what everyone here said - when they closed my first claim and opened the new one, my wage data didn't transfer correctly. She said she can see all my Washington wages in the system, and she can also see that Louisiana had already reported my wages there (they were in the system but not attached to my new claim). She's escalated my case to a claims specialist who can manually reattach all my wage data to the current claim. Should be fixed within 5-7 business days. I'm still going to file that appeal just to be safe, but at least someone is working on fixing the issue now. Thanks everyone for your advice and support!

If your claim has been in adjudication for more than 3 weeks, you might want to contact your state representative's office. Many have staff dedicated to helping constituents with ESD issues, and they can often get information or escalate your claim when you can't get through directly. Just google "[your county] state representative" and most have a constituent services form on their website.

Any update? Were you able to get through to ESD?