ESD appeal timeline after denied claim - what to expect?

oh man I feel for u... I had my claim denied back in February and filed an appeal right away. took almost 5 WEEKS just to get the acknowledgment letter from OAH saying they received my appeal!! Then another 3 weeks after that to get my hearing date scheduled. The actual hearing was about 2 weeks after that. So all together it was like 10 weeks from denial to hearing. Ridiculous tbh.

The appeal process typically takes 8-12 weeks from start to finish, though I've seen it move faster in some cases. Here's what to expect: 1. OAH will mail (not email) an acknowledgment letter within 2-4 weeks 2. You'll receive a hearing notice with your scheduled date about 3-4 weeks after that 3. The hearing itself usually occurs 2-3 weeks after you get the notice 4. Decision comes about 1-2 weeks after the hearing Make sure you're continuing to file your weekly claims during this entire process! If you win your appeal, you'll get paid for all those weeks - but only if you filed the weekly claims.

mine took FOREVERRR!! seriously like 4 months total before i got a decision. and they sent everything by mail which was super annoying because i almost missed my hearing date!!! check your mailbox everyday!!!

Yes, absolutely continue filing weekly claims and doing your 3 job search activities each week. Document EVERYTHING. Before your hearing, you'll want to gather: - Any communication from your employer about separation - Pay stubs or proof of income - Records of job search activities - Any other documents that support your case The most important thing is preparation. The judge (Administrative Law Judge or ALJ) will give both sides a chance to present their case. Your former employer will likely have representation, so you need to be organized and clear about why you qualify for benefits. Also, after 3 weeks of waiting for OAH to contact you, call them directly at 360-407-2700 to check on your appeal status.

After 3 weeks of calling ESD every day trying to check on my appeal status and never getting through, I finally used Claimyr (claimyr.com) and got connected to an actual ESD agent in about 20 minutes. They were able to tell me exactly where my appeal was in the process and gave me a realistic timeline. Saved me weeks of anxiety not knowing what was happening. They have a video demo that shows how it works: https://youtu.be/7DieNd3C7zQ?si=26TzE_zGms-DODN3. Seriously, best decision I made during this whole unemployment nightmare.

what was ur reason for denial? that can affect timeline too. misconduct cases tend to take longer than quit cases in my experience. also did u get a fact finding interview before they denied u?

The OAH hearing is actually pretty formal - more like court than I expected. It's done by phone usually, but they record everything and you have to submit any evidence ahead of time. My hearing lasted about an hour. The judge asked a bunch of questions and my former employer was there too (awkward!). Got my decision about 10 days later.

Quick update on current timelines - I'm a volunteer at WorkSource and we're seeing OAH appeals averaging about 9 weeks total right now (early 2025). That's a bit faster than the 12+ weeks we were seeing last year. Make sure your contact information is current in both your eServices account AND with OAH directly (they're separate systems).

btw did u know u can check ur appeal status online? go to oah.wa.gov and click on "check appeal status" - u need ur case # which should be in the confirmation email u got when u filed the appeal.