ESD 'excess earnings' due to severance pay - when will benefits actually start?

This is actually normal and working as intended. Severance pay is considered 'deductible income' by ESD and gets reported as earnings during the weeks you receive it. Since your severance was paid at your regular rate, it likely exceeded your weekly benefit amount, resulting in those 'excess earnings' determinations. The good news is that you did everything correctly by continuing to file weekly claims during this period, and now that your severance has ended, your regular UI benefits should begin without any further action needed from you. You don't need to involve the governor's office - this is standard procedure.

OMG I had literally THE SAME THING happen to me last year when I got laid off! My company gave me 6 weeks severance and I kpet getting those stupid excess earnings messages. I was freaking out thinking my claim was denied or something!!! But yea as soon as the severance ended the benefits started showing up in my account. Just keep filing every week and you should be fine. Its actualy good you already filed for all those weeks because it shows ESD you were available for work the whole time.

I'm a bit surprised people are suggesting this is working as intended without asking more questions. In WA state, how severance is treated depends on HOW it was paid. If it was truly severance (a lump sum payment for job loss) rather than "continuation pay" (keeping you on payroll after termination), it might be handled differently. The key distinction is: 1. Continuation pay: Treated as wages and reduces benefits during the weeks paid 2. True severance: Might not reduce benefits if paid as a lump sum Since you mentioned being paid "bi-weekly at my normal hourly rate," ESD is treating this as continuation pay, which explains the excess earnings determinations. If your severance has ended and your most recent claim was accepted, you should start receiving benefits now. And no, contacting the governor's office would be premature. If you don't receive benefits within 10 days after your first eligible week, contact ESD directly first.

the govs office wont help u anyway. they just send u back to esd. ive been dealing with them for months!!!! system is totally broken. they dont even answer they stupid phones.

If you're having trouble getting through to ESD agents on the phone (which is super common), I'd recommend trying Claimyr. I was in a similar situation with confusing excess earnings messages and couldn't get anyone to explain it to me. Claimyr helped me actually connect with an ESD agent instead of waiting on hold forever. They have a video that shows how it works: https://youtu.be/7DieNd3C7zQ?si=26TzE_zGms-DODN3 and their website is claimyr.com. Worked for me when I was desperately trying to understand why my benefits weren't coming through.

Just wait a few more days before doing anything drastic. I got laid off in October and had something similar happen with my severance. Once that last severance payment cleared, my UI benefits started automatically the next week. The excess earnings messages are normal - it just means you made too much money those weeks to qualify for unemployment. Keep filing your weekly claims and job search activities as usual.

I think your confusing severance pay and continuation pay as someone else pointed out. If its REAL severance (like a lump sum payment) you might be eligible for benefits during that time depending on how its reported. But sounds like your company just kept you on payroll an extra month which is definately going to count as excess earnings. Did you report the income correctly each week when filing? That's super important or you could get hit with an overpayment later.

Just to clarify something important that hasn't been mentioned yet: even though you didn't receive benefits during your severance period due to excess earnings, those weeks DID count toward your benefit year and one of them should have satisfied your waiting week requirement. This means once your eligible weekly claims begin (with no/low earnings), you should receive payment for that first eligible week without another waiting period. You should see payment within 2-3 business days after filing your first eligible weekly claim. If you filed on Sunday for the previous week and had no earnings to report, you should see payment by Wednesday or Thursday at the latest.

Also make sure your looking at the right page on eServices! My friend thought she wasnt getting benefits for like a month because she was only looking at the main page summary thing. You gotta click through to see the detailed payment history sometimes to see if money is pending or has been sent to your card/bank.

I went through something very similar when I was laid off in 2023! My employer provided 8 weeks of severance that was paid through their regular payroll system, and I got those same "excess earnings" messages every single week. It was so stressful because I thought I was doing something wrong with my claims. The key thing is that you kept filing every week during the severance period - that's exactly what you're supposed to do. Those weeks still count toward your benefit year even though you didn't receive payments. Once my severance ended, my benefits started automatically within about 3-4 days of filing my first claim with no earnings. One tip: double-check your payment method in eServices to make sure your direct deposit info is correct, since it's been a while since you've received payments. I almost missed my first payment because my bank account info had changed and I forgot to update it! Also, keep doing your job search activities as required - they'll still audit those even during the severance period. You're definitely not being impatient, and the governor's office would just refer you back to ESD anyway. Give it until the end of this week and if you don't see anything, then maybe try calling ESD directly.

I'm going through almost the exact same situation right now! Got laid off in late November and my company provided severance through the end of December. Every single weekly claim in December showed "excess earnings" and I was getting so worried that I'd messed something up. But my first claim in January was finally approved and I should be getting my first payment this week. It's really frustrating that ESD doesn't explain this better on their website - I had no idea that severance would block benefits but that I still needed to keep filing every week. I almost stopped filing after the second "excess earnings" message because I thought my claim was denied! Thankfully I found some info online that said to keep filing no matter what. The waiting and uncertainty is the worst part, especially when you can't get through to anyone on the phone to confirm what's happening. But sounds like we're both on the right track now that the severance periods have ended!

I'm dealing with something similar right now! I was laid off in early December and received severance through January that was paid on my regular schedule. I kept getting those "excess earnings" determinations and was so confused about whether I was doing something wrong. Reading through all these responses has been incredibly helpful - especially learning that those weeks still count toward my benefit year even though I didn't receive payments. One thing I noticed is that ESD's online system doesn't give you much context about WHY you're getting excess earnings messages, which makes it really scary when you're already stressed about losing your job. It would be so much better if they included a brief explanation like "You reported earnings that exceed your weekly benefit amount" instead of just the cryptic "excess earnings" status. For anyone else going through this - definitely keep filing every single week even if you're getting these messages! I almost stopped filing after three weeks of excess earnings because I thought my claim was broken, but thankfully I found some forum posts that said to keep going. Now that my severance has ended, I'm hoping to see my first real payment next week.

I'm currently going through this exact situation and it's such a relief to read all these responses! I was laid off in mid-December and have been receiving severance payments through my company's regular payroll system. Every weekly claim I've filed has come back with "excess earnings" and I was starting to panic that I had done something wrong or that my claim was denied. What really helped me understand this better was realizing that ESD treats continuation pay (which is what most "severance" actually is when paid through regular payroll) as regular wages during those weeks. Since my severance payments were higher than my weekly benefit amount, they completely offset any UI benefits I would have received. The key thing I learned from reading everyone's experiences is that those weeks with excess earnings still count - they're not "lost" weeks. One of them satisfied my waiting week requirement, and the rest count toward my benefit year. I'm still in my severance period for another few weeks, but now I feel confident that once it ends, my benefits will start automatically as long as I keep filing every Sunday. Thanks to everyone who shared their experiences - it really helps to know this is normal and that the system is actually working as intended, even though the messaging could definitely be clearer!

I'm currently in a very similar situation and this thread has been incredibly reassuring! I was laid off in December and received what my employer called "severance" but was actually paid through their regular payroll system. I've been getting those same "excess earnings" determinations every week and was starting to worry I'd done something wrong with my claim. What really helped me understand this was reading everyone's explanations about how ESD treats continuation pay versus true lump-sum severance. Since my payments were processed through regular payroll at my normal rate, ESD is rightfully treating them as wages that exceed my weekly benefit amount. The most valuable thing I learned from this discussion is that those weeks with excess earnings aren't wasted - they still count toward my benefit year and one satisfies the waiting week requirement. I have about two more weeks of continuation pay left, but now I feel confident that my UI benefits will start automatically once that ends, as long as I keep filing every Sunday. The anxiety around this whole process is real, especially when ESD's messaging isn't very clear about what "excess earnings" actually means. But knowing that so many others have gone through this exact scenario and had their benefits start normally once the severance/continuation pay ended gives me a lot of peace of mind. Thanks to everyone who shared their experiences!

I'm going through the exact same thing right now and this thread has been so helpful! Got laid off in early December and my company provided what they called "severance" but it's been coming through their regular payroll system every two weeks. I've been getting those "excess earnings" determinations on every weekly claim and was starting to panic that I'd somehow screwed up my application. What really clicked for me after reading everyone's responses is understanding that this is continuation pay, not true severance, which is why ESD treats it as regular wages. Since these payments are higher than my weekly benefit amount, they're completely offsetting any UI benefits I would receive during this period. The most reassuring thing I learned is that these weeks still count toward my benefit year - they're not lost time. I have about 4 more weeks of continuation pay left, but now I feel confident that my benefits will start automatically once that period ends, as long as I keep filing every Sunday. The anxiety around not being able to reach anyone at ESD to confirm what's happening has been brutal, especially when you're already stressed about being unemployed. But seeing so many others go through this exact scenario successfully gives me hope. Thanks to everyone who shared their experiences - it's made such a difference in my peace of mind!