ESD standby confusion - union apprentice school weeks not paying correctly

This is a common issue with trade union apprenticeship programs. ESD has specific rules for what they call "approved training" that's different from regular standby status. When you reopen a claim, it sometimes takes 1-2 weeks to process before payment shows up in the system. DON'T panic yet. The "excess hours" for the second week makes sense if he went back to regular work after the school week - that's working as intended.

my husbnd is in IBEW and we had same problm!!! its bcause the training weeks are under commissioner approved training but its diffrent from standby. u need to make sure the union sends the proper aproval form to ESD every time. did they send that?

I work with trades unemployment issues frequently. There's some confusion here that needs clarification: 1. For union apprentice training, you need Commissioner Approved Training (CAT) status properly documented, not just standby 2. The training provider (union) must submit the proper documentation to ESD 3. You should only claim for the specific training weeks 4. The "excess hours" for the second week is correct if he returned to work The most efficient way to resolve this is to call ESD directly to verify his CAT status is properly set up in the system. The challenge is getting through to someone who understands apprenticeship training programs.

I had the EXACT same issue with my husband's sheet metal apprenticeship program! Calling ESD is nearly impossible these days. After trying for 3 weeks, I finally used Claimyr (claimyr.com) to get through to a real person. They have this service that gets you to an ESD agent quickly - you can see how it works in their video demo: https://youtu.be/7DieNd3C7zQ?si=26TzE_zGms-DODN3. The agent explained that the Commissioner Approved Training status has to be properly coded in their system for each training period, and they were able to fix it on the spot. Worth considering if you can't get through on your own.

THE WHOLE ESD SYSTEM IS GARBAGE!!!! I've been dealing with the same apprenticeship BS for THREE YEARS and every single time there's a different excuse. One time they say file continuously, next time they say only file for training weeks. Then they say you need CAT status, then they say standby is fine. THEN THEY WANT MONEY BACK LATER CLAIMING YOU DID IT WRONG!!!! I'm convinced they intentionally give bad advice so they can claim overpayments later. DOCUMENT EVERYTHING - get names of agents you speak with, confirmation numbers, EVERYTHING IN WRITING!!!!

To clarify some confusion I'm seeing in these comments: 1. Commissioner Approved Training (CAT) and Trade Apprentice Training are actually two different programs in the ESD system. 2. For union apprenticeship training weeks, you need to have your union training coordinator contact ESD's Trade Program Unit directly, not just submit a general training letter. 3. The proper process is to reopen the claim before each training period and only claim for those specific weeks, exactly as you were instructed. 4. The system won't show processing status immediately - there's usually a lag of 5-7 business days before the system reflects the proper coding. My recommendation is to give it until the end of this week to see if the training week processes correctly. If not, you'll need to contact ESD directly to have them verify the trade apprenticeship coding is correct.

wait did u say he's been doing this for 5 years?? i thought there was a time limit on unemployment benefits? can someone really collect for that long?

hey what trade is ur husband in? my husbands in electrical and we FINALLY got this figured out after 2 yrs of headaches. theres specific esd ppl who handle each trade union!!

Based on everything in this thread, here's what I recommend: 1. Wait 5-7 business days from when you reopened the claim to see if the training week processes automatically 2. If nothing happens by then, you need to contact ESD specifically about "Trade Apprenticeship Training" (not standby or regular CAT) 3. Ask your union training coordinator to verify they've submitted the current apprenticeship program documentation to ESD's Trade Program Unit 4. When you do get through to ESD, request that they review all previous similar claims to ensure consistency in handling 5. Ask for written confirmation of the correct procedure for future training weeks This should help prevent the cycle of conflicting information that's caused problems in the past.