Can I just stop filing weekly claims with ESD if I don't want unemployment benefits anymore?

You can absolutely just stop filing weekly claims. The system is designed for this - when you stop filing, your claim becomes inactive after 4 weeks of no activity. You don't need to do anything special to cancel or withdraw. The ESD won't chase you down for not continuing to file! Just make sure you report any earnings for weeks you did file for.

Like the other person said, you can just stop filing your weekly claims. But if you'd like to be extra thorough, you can also report your new employment when you start working. This keeps everything clean in the system. Congrats on the new job!

i was in the exact same boat last month!!! waited FOREVER and then found work before getting a dime lol. just stopped filling out the weekly stuff and nothing bad happened 👍

Since your claim has been pending for 3 weeks already, you might actually be owed backpay for those weeks if you were eligible. Even though you have a new job now, you could be entitled to benefits for the weeks you were unemployed. It might be worth trying to reach ESD to resolve whatever is holding up your claim. If you've had trouble getting through to ESD on the phone (like most people), I recently discovered a service called Claimyr (claimyr.com) that helps you skip the phone queue and get connected to an actual agent. They have a video showing how it works: https://youtu.be/7DieNd3C7zQ?si=26TzE_zGms-DODN3. I used it last month when my claim was stuck in pending for similar reasons and finally got it resolved.

THE SYSTEM IS DESIGNED TO FRUSTRATE YOU INTO GIVING UP!!!! This is EXACTLY what they want - for you to just walk away from benefits you're entitled to. I've been dealing with ESD for years and they make everything so complicated ON PURPOSE. If you were eligible for those 3 weeks, that's YOUR MONEY. DON'T let them keep it just because their system is broken!!!!

You need to actually tell them you found a job when you file your next weekly claim. Just stopping without explanation could actually flag your account in a bad way. My brother did that and then when he needed benefits again two years later they gave him a hard time because of the "unexplained gap" in his previous claim.

Something else to consider: if your claim has been pending for 3 weeks, there might be an issue they need to resolve through adjudication. If that's the case, it could be worth following through just to make sure there's nothing in your record that could cause problems in the future. But honestly, most people just stop filing when they get a new job and it's totally fine.

After reading everyone's advice, I think I'm going to try calling ESD once more to see if I can find out why my claim has been pending. If I can get through, I'll let them know I found a job but would like to resolve anything for the weeks I was unemployed. If I can't get through after a few more tries, I'll probably just let it go and move on with my new job. Thanks everyone for the helpful information!

Just wanted to add my experience - I was in a similar situation last year where my claim was pending forever and I found work before getting any payments. I did end up calling ESD to let them know about the new job, and they were actually able to process my backpay for the weeks I was legitimately unemployed. It took another few weeks to get the money, but it was worth it since I had bills piling up from being out of work. The rep I spoke with said it's totally normal for people to find jobs while their claims are still processing, and they deal with it all the time. Whatever you decide, congrats on landing the new position so quickly!