ESD denied claim after quitting due to bereavement discrimination - too late to appeal?

That manager sounds like a complete jerk! So sorry for all your losses. Unfortunately ESD is really strict about their deadlines and documentation. Did they send you an official denial letter? It should tell you how many days you have to appeal - usually only 30 days though. You could try calling them and explaining about your wife's hospitalization, but honestly they're really hard to reach by phone.

you should have applied RIGHT AWAY after quitting!! waiting till march was a huge mistake man. ESD looks at that gap and thinks ur not serious about working. also for quitting u need TONS of documentation proving u had good reason... did u save texts or emails about the bereavement stuff??

The best thing you can do now is file an appeal IMMEDIATELY even if you think you might be past the deadline. Sometimes they'll still consider it, especially with extenuating circumstances like your wife's hospitalization. Make sure to include hospital documentation showing the dates she was there. The key for quitting cases is proving that you had "good cause" to quit which the bereavement discrimination could qualify as, but you'll need to make a strong case and provide as much supporting evidence as possible. In your appeal, be very clear and specific about the timeline of events.

As someone who's been through the appeal process, I strongly recommend using Claimyr to get through to an actual ESD agent before filing your appeal. When I was in a similar situation (though different circumstances), I wasted weeks trying to reach someone. A friend told me about claimyr.com - you can see how it works in this video: https://youtu.be/7DieNd3C7zQ?si=26TzE_zGms-DODN3. They get you through to an ESD agent usually within a couple hours rather than days of trying. The agent I spoke with gave me exact instructions on what to include in my appeal which made a huge difference. Worth getting guidance from an actual ESD person before submitting anything.

I'm sorry about your situation - ESD can be extremely frustrating to deal with. One important thing to understand: for voluntary quits, Washington requires you to prove you had "good cause" to leave your job. While the manager's comment was definitely inappropriate, ESD typically expects that you attempted to resolve the issue through your employer's HR department or through proper channels before quitting. Did you speak with HR or file any kind of complaint about the manager's behavior before leaving?

THEY ALWAYS DO THIS!!! ESD DENIES EVERYONE AT FIRST!!! happened to me twice i got denied and appealed both times and won. one time i missed a deadline by like 2 MONTHS and still got to appeal. DONT GIVE UP. the system is designed to make u quit trying but KEEP PUSHING. u obviously had good reason to quit, no one should talk to someone like that when theyre grieving, thats harassment plain and simple!!!

Few things you should know about appealing ESD decisions: 1. When you file an appeal, you'll eventually get scheduled for a hearing with an Administrative Law Judge through the Office of Administrative Hearings (OAH). 2. You need to gather ALL evidence before that hearing - including statements from coworkers, any documentation about your bereavements, and complete medical documentation about your wife's hospitalization. 3. For the "good cause" argument, you'll need to show that the working conditions were so intolerable that a reasonable person would have quit. The judge will consider if there were alternatives to quitting. 4. The fact that they actually terminated you AFTER you quit might actually help your case - be sure to emphasize this timeline. 5. For the late application and response to documentation, medical situations are considered "good cause" for late filing in many cases, but you absolutely need documentation. Good luck!

One more thing - if your appeal deadline has already passed, you can request a "good cause" exception for filing a late appeal. The same situation with your wife's hospitalization that prevented you from responding to their documentation request could potentially qualify as good cause for filing a late appeal. Make sure to submit medical documentation and be very specific about how it prevented you from meeting the deadlines.

my cousin works at a call center and says most ppl get denied at first just to see if theyll give up!! its like a test!! dont give up man