Approved for ESD benefits but weekly claims showing 'disqualified' - no explanation letter

The same exact thing happened to me in January! It turned out there was an employer protest that wasn't showing up in my online account. My former employer was claiming I quit (I didn't - was definitely laid off). The only way I found out was by finally getting through to an ESD agent by phone. They were able to see there was an adjudication issue that wasn't displaying properly in my account. You absolutely need to talk to a real person to get this fixed.

Omg thank you! That's actually really helpful - my manager did say some weird things in our final meeting that made me wonder if HR might classify things differently. How long did it take you to get through to an actual agent? I've tried calling a few times but always get the 'high call volume' message.

this happens ALL THE TIME and its so frustrating!!!!! esd systems are completly broken imo. u need to call them like 50 times in a row starting exactly at 8am when they open. thats literally the only way i ever got thru. good luck!!

Ugh, that sounds awful. I've already tried calling like 10 times in a row and gave up. Guess I need to be more persistent... Thanks for the tip about 8am sharp.

Here's what's likely happening: there's probably an issue requiring adjudication that's not properly linked to your online notifications. When this happens, your weekly claims get disqualified automatically until the underlying issue is resolved.\n\nPossible causes:\n1. Your employer disputed something about your separation (most common)\n2. There's an identity verification issue\n3. Something in your work history triggered a flag\n4. A job search activity was deemed insufficient\n\nUnfortunately, the only real solution is speaking directly with an ESD agent who can see the full details in their system. Continue filing weekly claims while you try to resolve this - if your disqualification is overturned, you'll receive back payments for those weeks.

Thank you so much for the detailed explanation! I'm definitely going to keep filing my weekly claims. Do you know if there's any specific department I should try to reach? The general number seems impossible to get through.

check ur mail carefully! sometimes they send the disqualification letters in really plain envelopes that look like junk mail. I almost threw mine away lol. also check ur spam folder if u have email notifications set up

Good point! I'll double check all my mail from the past few weeks. I haven't seen anything but maybe I missed it. And definitely going to check my spam folder right now.

Try using Claimyr to reach ESD by phone. I was in a similar situation last month - approved but then disqualified for 5 weeks with no explanation. I tried calling for days with no luck. Then I found Claimyr (claimyr.com) which gets you through the phone queue. It worked perfectly and they have a video demo showing how it works: https://youtu.be/7DieNd3C7zQ?si=26TzE_zGms-DODN3\n\nOnce I got through to ESD, the agent found my employer had filed an appeal claiming I was fired for misconduct (completely untrue). The agent put me in touch with the adjudication department who sorted it out. Worth every penny to get this resolved instead of waiting weeks for responses to messages.

i've heard about this service but wasn't sure if it was legit or not. did u have to wait long after using it?

No, I only waited about 20 minutes for a callback once they got me in the queue. Compared to the days I wasted trying to get through myself, it was amazing.

Has anyone mentioned AVAILABLE AND ABLE TO WORK??? This happened to me and it turned out I accidentally clicked NO on the \

I've been super careful about checking all my answers, but I'll review them again just to be sure. I definitely selected \

The same thing happened to me!!! I was approved for benefits but my weeklies were all disqualified. It was SO STRESSFUL. I spent 3 weeks trying to figure it out. Turns out there was a silly reason - I had a part-time job that I didn't report properly on my initial application (I thought it was too minimal to matter) and it triggered automatic disqualification. You NEED to talk to someone at ESD - it's the only way to fix it. Keep documenting everything in case you need to appeal.

That's interesting - I did have a very small contract job early last year that only paid about $1,200 total. I listed it on my application but maybe there was a problem with how I reported it. Thanks for sharing your experience, it helps to know I'm not alone in this!

Update: I just remembered another possibility. If you were approved for benefits but your weekly claims are being disqualified, check if your monetary determination letter specified any special conditions. Sometimes ESD approves your eligibility generally but requires specific documentation for each weekly claim. For example, if you're on standby status or have work availability limitations, there might be additional forms you need to submit with each weekly claim. This information would be in your monetary determination letter or a subsequent communication.

I just double-checked my determination letter and it doesn't mention any special conditions or extra forms. It's a standard approval with my benefit amount calculation. I'm starting to think it really is some kind of employer protest situation like a few people mentioned. I'll try calling again tomorrow morning.

Did you figure this out? I'm curious what the problem was. Also, for anyone else reading this thread in the future, ALWAYS appeal disqualifications even if you don't know why you were disqualified. You have limited time to file an appeal (usually 30 days from the date of the decision), and if you miss that window, you might lose your right to contest the decision regardless of the circumstances.

Yes! Finally got through to ESD this morning. You were right - my employer disputed the claim saying I had