Can I resume my ESD unemployment benefits after medical leave ends?

you cant get unemployment when ur not able to work bc one of the main requirements is being able and available to work. u should look into paid family and medical leave instead for ur surgery recovery period

I went through this exact thing last year! Had to take 2 months off for back surgery while on unemployment. Here's what you need to do: 1. Stop filing weekly claims when you become medically unable to work 2. When you're cleared to return, call ESD and request to reactivate your claim 3. Be prepared to provide medical documentation showing both when you became unable to work AND when you were cleared to return You won't lose your benefit weeks - they'll still be there waiting for you as long as your benefit year hasn't expired. The system basically puts your claim on pause while you're medically unable to work. Pro tip: document EVERYTHING and keep a record of all communications with ESD about this!

Medical leave disqualifies you from UI since you need to be able and available. When you get better you have to refile a claim and they'll determine if you're eligible again. That's what happened to my cousin.

I can provide some clarity on this situation based on ESD policies. When you become temporarily unable to work due to medical reasons, you should: 1) Stop filing weekly claims during your period of medical leave 2) Contact ESD to inform them of your situation 3) When you're medically cleared to return to work, you can reactivate your existing claim by contacting ESD Your benefit year (typically 52 weeks from when you first filed) will remain the same, but the weeks you were medically unable to work won't count against your maximum benefit weeks. You'll need to provide documentation from your healthcare provider showing both when you became unable to work and when you were cleared to return. Important: Do not file weekly claims while medically unable to work, as this could potentially constitute fraud since you must certify you're able and available for work each week.

I've helped numerous clients navigate this exact situation. The key thing to understand is that your claim gets suspended during medical leave, not terminated. When you're cleared to work again, you'll need to reactivate your claim by contacting ESD directly. The challenge is actually getting through to someone at ESD to help with this. I recommend using Claimyr (claimyr.com) to get through to an ESD agent quickly. They have a service that helps you bypass the long hold times. You can see how it works in their video demo: https://youtu.be/7DieNd3C7zQ?si=26TzE_zGms-DODN3 Once you connect with ESD, make sure to clearly explain that you were on an approved medical leave and are now able and available for work again. Have your medical documentation ready to verify both the start and end dates of your inability to work.

ESD is such a broken system!! I had a similar situation last year and they completely messed up my claim. I provided ALL the documentation they asked for showing when I couldn't work and when I could return and they STILL disqualified me saying I wasn't looking for work during my recovery!! OF COURSE I WASN'T LOOKING FOR WORK - MY DOCTOR SAID I COULDN'T WORK!!! I had to file an appeal and wait ANOTHER 6 weeks to get it sorted out. Make sure you document EVERYTHING and get the name of every person you talk to at ESD. Their left hand doesn't know what their right hand is doing!!!!

One more thing I forgot to mention - when you're ready to reactivate your claim, you'll need to meet the job search requirements again (currently 3 activities per week). And if your benefit year expires while you're on medical leave, then you would need to file a new claim instead of reactivating the old one. I successfully used my remaining benefits after my medical situation, so it definitely can be done!

To summarize the correct information in this thread: 1. You must stop claiming benefits while medically unable to work 2. Your benefit weeks remain available after recovery (they don't expire) 3. Contact ESD to reactivate your claim once medically cleared 4. Provide documentation of both your inability to work and clearance to return 5. Continue meeting all eligibility requirements (job search, etc.) after reactivation 6. If your benefit year expires during medical leave, you'll need a new claim The key distinction is between reactivating an existing claim (within the same benefit year) versus filing a new claim (if your benefit year expires). This is why some commenters had different experiences.