ESD approved my claim after medical leave termination - am I safe from overpayment now?
I've got an unusual situation with my unemployment claim that's keeping me up at night. Back in January, I was on an approved medical leave from my customer service job at a large healthcare call center. My doctor recommended an additional 3 weeks beyond my originally approved return date, but when I told my employer I needed more time, they gave me an ultimatum: either return immediately or resign. I explained that I physically couldn't return yet based on medical advice, but I wasn't going to resign. They ended up terminating me for "failure to return from leave" and sent me an official termination letter. I filed for unemployment and indicated I was terminated for performance reasons (since technically I couldn't "perform" the job functions due to my medical condition). ESD approved my claim and my determination letter stated my former employer had 30 days to appeal. That period has now passed with no appeal from them. My question is: Am I in the clear now? Or could ESD come back months or even years later demanding I repay all benefits as an overpayment? I'm terrified of building my budget around these payments only to get hit with a huge repayment demand later. I'm getting about $825/week and really need it while job hunting, but I'm nervous about spending it fully. Has anyone had experience with this type of situation?
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Zara Mirza
You should be fine. Once the employer's appeal window closes, they can't contest your eligibility on that basis anymore. The only way ESD would create an overpayment now would be if they discover some other issue with your claim (like if you weren't reporting earnings correctly on weekly claims or if you weren't available for work/actively seeking work). But the termination reason itself is settled once that appeal period passes. For your peace of mind, be sure to keep good records of your job search activities (3 per week) and any communications with ESD. Keep that determination letter safe too!
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Sean Kelly
•Thank you so much for this answer! That's a huge relief. I've been documenting all my job search activities and keeping copies of everything. I'm definitely meeting the 3 per week requirement and have been applying to a ton of jobs. So the fact they can't reverse the eligibility decision itself is what I needed to hear.
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Luca Russo
WRONG INFORMATION ABOVE!! they absolutly CAN still hit u with overpayment later!!! happened to me after 4 months of getting benefits, even tho employer never appeald. ESD just decided to review my case again and changed there mind. had to pay back $7,200!!! its total BS!!!
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Sean Kelly
•Oh no, that's exactly what I'm afraid of! Did they give any reason why they reviewed your claim again months later? Was there something specific that triggered the review?
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Zara Mirza
•There's a difference between employer appeals and ESD reviews. The employer can't appeal after 30 days, but ESD has more leeway for their own reviews. However, those later reviews are typically triggered by something specific - like unreported earnings that show up in quarterly wage reports, or inconsistent information. Random reviews without cause are pretty uncommon.
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Nia Harris
I went through something kinda similar with my healthcare job! They terminated me after I couldn't come back from surgery as quickly as they wanted. I had to go through the whole adjudication process because my employer claimed I "abandoned" my job when really I was just following my doctor's orders. One thing I'd suggest is saving ALL your medical documentation that shows you couldn't return to work when they demanded. If there ever is a question later, having that documentation will be crucial. Also, in your weekly claims, if they ask if you were able and available to work, make sure you're answering those correctly based on your current medical status (not your past status).
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Sean Kelly
•That's really helpful advice, thank you. I do have all my medical documentation including the doctor's note about the extended leave recommendation. And yes, I'm being careful to accurately report my current ability to work on the weekly claims. I'm fully recovered now and available for work, so I've been answering 'yes' to the able and available questions.
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GalaxyGazer
Have you tried contacting ESD directly to get clarification about your specific situation? While the general information others have provided is helpful, nothing beats getting an official answer about your individual claim. I recommend using Claimyr (claimyr.com) to get through to an ESD agent quickly instead of waiting on hold for hours. I was in a similar state of anxiety about my claim and used their service to connect with an agent in about 20 minutes instead of spending days trying to get through. The agent was able to look at my specific claim notes and give me definitive answers. They have a video demo of how it works here: https://youtu.be/7DieNd3C7zQ?si=26TzE_zGms-DODN3
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Sean Kelly
•I hadn't heard of Claimyr before. I tried calling ESD directly last week and gave up after being on hold for over an hour. Getting a direct answer from them would definitely help my peace of mind. I'll check out that service - thanks for the recommendation!
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Mateo Sanchez
•is that service legit? sounds sketch to pay some company just to talk to ESD. has anyone else used it??
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Nia Harris
•I've used it twice when I was desperate to talk to someone at ESD. Worked both times and got me through pretty quick. Not something I'd use regularly, but when you absolutely need to talk to someone, it does what it promises.
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Aisha Mahmood
kinda off topic but what kind of healthcare call center did u work at? i might be applying to something similar and wondering about the medical leave policies. they sound pretty strict based on ur experience...
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Sean Kelly
•It was one of the major insurance providers in Washington (don't want to name them specifically). Their official policy was actually decent on paper - up to 12 weeks protected leave. The problem came when I needed an extension beyond what was initially approved. Despite having doctor's documentation, they weren't willing to accommodate the additional time. If you're applying to similar jobs, I'd definitely ask detailed questions about their leave policies during interviews.
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Ethan Moore
Just make sure you're meeting all your ongoing claim requirements: 1. File your weekly claims on time EVERY week 2. Complete and document at least 3 job search activities each week 3. Register with WorkSource if you haven't already 4. Be honest about any part-time earnings if you pick up temporary work 5. Remain able and available for suitable work As long as you're doing all of these things consistently, the likelihood of an overpayment situation is minimized. The most common reasons people get hit with overpayments are unreported earnings, failure to job search properly, or not being available for work while collecting benefits.
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Sean Kelly
•This is a really helpful checklist, thank you! I've been doing all of these things, so that gives me some confidence. I am registered with WorkSource and I've been very careful to meet all the job search requirements (actually doing more than the minimum 3 per week). I haven't had any earnings to report yet, but I understand how important it is to report accurately if I do get temporary work.
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Luca Russo
Anybody else think its RIDICULOUS that they can fire ppl for medical reasons and then argue against unemployment?? The system is totally rigged against workers!!! My cousin went thru something similar and had to fight for months to get benefits even tho she had cancer treatments!!!
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Yuki Kobayashi
•Agreed! The way employers can just discard employees when they have health issues is awful. Workers have so few protections in practice, regardless of what the laws claim. Then they fight your unemployment as if you had a choice in the matter!
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Zara Mirza
•To be fair, there are FMLA protections and ADA accommodations that should help in these situations, but they're often poorly implemented or employers find loopholes. For unemployment purposes though, being unable to work due to medical reasons is actually a tricky area because technically you need to be able and available for work to qualify for UI. That's why documentation and timing are so important.
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Ethan Moore
One important distinction: There's a difference between being terminated because you were on approved medical leave versus being disqualified because you're currently unable to work due to medical conditions. If you were terminated for taking medical leave but are NOW able to work, that's generally covered by UI. If you're currently unable to work due to ongoing medical issues, that's typically not covered by regular UI (might need to look into disability instead). Based on your description, it sounds like you fall into the first category - you were terminated for taking leave, but are currently able to work. That's likely why your claim was approved. Just make sure when you answer the weekly claim questions about being able and available, you're answering based on your CURRENT status, not your status when you were terminated.
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Sean Kelly
•You've hit the nail on the head. I was terminated for needing extended leave, but I'm fully recovered now and able to work. I've been answering the weekly claim questions based on my current ability to work, which is 100%. This is exactly my situation - terminated for past medical leave but currently able and available for work.
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