Do you get paid for the waiting week on unemployment - Washington ESD confusion

The waiting week in Washington is unpaid - it's basically a one-week delay before benefits start. You don't get paid for that first week at all, not even at the end of your claim period.

Actually, Washington eliminated the waiting week requirement in 2021. You should be getting paid for your first eligible week as long as your claim is approved and you meet all the requirements.

I had the same confusion when I filed last month. Couldn't get through to Washington ESD on the phone to get a straight answer - kept getting the busy signal or getting hung up on after waiting forever. Finally used this service called Claimyr that helped me get through to an actual person at ESD who confirmed there's no waiting week anymore. Check out claimyr.com - they have a video demo at https://youtu.be/7DieNd3C7zQ that shows how it works.

can confirm no waiting week in washington anymore, got paid for my first week when i filed in december

The Washington ESD website is terrible for explaining this stuff clearly. I spent forever trying to figure out the same thing when I filed. Turns out if your claim gets approved, you get paid for all eligible weeks including the first one, but there can be delays in processing that make it look like there's still a waiting week.

I'm a former ESD employee and can clarify this. Washington State eliminated the waiting week requirement effective January 2021. However, your first week of benefits is only payable if you meet all eligibility requirements for that week, including being able and available for work and conducting job search activities if required.

This whole thread is why I hate dealing with unemployment stuff. Nobody knows what they're talking about and the official website is useless. I filed 3 weeks ago and still don't know if I'm getting paid for my first week or not.

Just to add another data point - filed my claim in November 2024 and got paid for every week including the first one. No waiting week in Washington anymore, but like others said, that first week still has to meet all the regular requirements.

For what it's worth, I remember reading about this change but wasn't sure if it was permanent or temporary. Good to know it's still in effect. Washington actually did something helpful for unemployed people for once!

I had to call ESD about this exact question last week. After trying their regular number for days with no luck, I used that Claimyr service someone mentioned earlier. Actually got through to a human who confirmed - no waiting week in WA, but your first week payment depends on meeting all the weekly requirements and your claim being approved.

The key thing people are missing is that even though there's no waiting week, you still have to serve any disqualification periods before getting paid. So if there's an issue with your separation from work or something else, that could delay your first week payment even if the waiting week requirement is gone.

My sister went through this same confusion a few months ago. Kept checking her account expecting to see $0 for the first week but ended up getting paid for it once everything was approved. The no waiting week thing is real.

THANK YOU to everyone who clarified this! I was also confused about the waiting week thing. Glad to know Washington actually eliminated it. Now if only they could make their website less confusing...

Bottom line for anyone else reading this thread: Washington has NO waiting week as of 2021. You get paid for your first eligible week IF your claim is approved and you meet all requirements for that week. If you're seeing $0 for week 1, it's probably because your claim is still processing or there's an eligibility issue, not because of a waiting week.

Just wanted to add my experience for anyone else dealing with this confusion - I filed my Washington unemployment claim about 6 weeks ago and was also worried about the waiting week. After reading through all these responses, I can confirm that Washington really did eliminate the waiting week. I got paid for my first week once my claim was fully approved, which took about 3 weeks total. The key is just being patient while they process everything and making sure you meet all the weekly requirements from day one. Don't stress if you see $0 initially - it doesn't mean there's a waiting week, it just means they're still working on your claim!