ESD success story: Unemployment approved after 7 weeks of adjudication!
Just wanted to share a small victory here! After 7 long weeks of stressing out about bills and being stuck in adjudication, my unemployment claim was FINALLY approved yesterday! The ESD representative told me my back pay (about $4,850) should hit my account by next Wednesday. For those still waiting - don't give up! I almost did. My claim was held up because my former employer (construction company) contested my hours and said I was terminated for misconduct (completely false - they had a slowdown and laid off 3 of us). I submitted every email, text and performance review I had to prove my case. Anyone else had success with getting through adjudication recently? The waiting game was absolutely brutal, but the relief now is unreal!
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Dylan Evans
congrats!! im in week 5 of adjudication and starting to lose hope. did they call u or just update your claim online?
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Fatima Al-Mansour
•They actually called me - which was shocking because I'd left about 10 messages with no response. The number came up as 'unknown caller' so make sure you answer those! The online status changed about 2 hours after the call.
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Sofia Gomez
This is really helpful to hear. I'm currently in a similar situation - week 4 of adjudication with my former employer (retail) claiming I abandoned my position when they actually cut my hours to zero without formally laying me off. I've been documenting everything but was getting worried they'd automatically side with the employer. Did they make you do a fact-finding interview? I've been waiting for one but haven't received any scheduling notification yet. Also, did you continue filing your weekly claims during the adjudication period?
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Fatima Al-Mansour
•Yes, definitely keep filing every week! Even though you won't get paid until adjudication is complete, you need those weeks on record for the back pay. And yes, I did have a fact-finding interview - it was scheduled by email about 5 weeks into the process. The interview itself was pretty straightforward, just explaining my side of what happened and confirming the documents I'd already uploaded.
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StormChaser
SEVEN WEEKS??? That's ridiculous!!! I'm only on week 2 of adjudication and already pulling my hair out. The ESD system is BROKEN. Did they give you any explanation for why it took so long? Did you do anything special to get them to finally look at your case???
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Fatima Al-Mansour
•No real explanation besides saying they're backed up with cases. The rep mentioned something about employer responses taking longer to process now. I wish I could say I did something clever to speed things up, but honestly I think my claim just finally made it to the top of their pile. The most helpful thing I did was upload EVERY possible document that supported my case through the ESD portal.
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Dmitry Petrov
Have you tried Claimyr? I was stuck in adjudication for weeks and couldn't get through on the phones at all. Found this service at claimyr.com that got me connected to a real ESD agent in under 25 minutes. They have a video showing how it works: https://youtu.be/7DieNd3C7zQ?si=26TzE_zGms-DODN3 The agent I spoke with was able to look at my file and tell me exactly what was holding things up. Way better than being in limbo for weeks.
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StormChaser
•Does this actually work? I've been trying to call ESD for THREE DAYS and either get disconnected or told to call back later. At this point I'll try anything!!
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Dmitry Petrov
•It worked for me last month. Not instant but way better than the alternative. The ESD agent told me exactly what documents they needed that were missing from my file.
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Ava Williams
my friend got approved last week after 9 weeks in adjucation so ur actually lucky it only took 7 lol the system is a joke
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Miguel Castro
Congratulations on getting your claim approved! This is actually quite common with construction industry claims, as they often have higher rates of employer protests due to seasonal work patterns and the classification of layoffs. For others reading this who are in adjudication: remember that Washington state law requires ESD to make a determination within 21 days, but this timeline is often extended when employers contest claims or additional fact-finding is needed. The 2025 average for adjudication is currently running 4-6 weeks for standard UI claims. Make sure you're checking both your online portal AND your physical mail, as some notices are only sent via USPS. Also, under current guidelines, you need to be completing and documenting your three job search activities each week even while in adjudication status.
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Fatima Al-Mansour
•Thank you for this info! You're right about the mail - I actually got an important letter about a week before my claim was approved asking for one more piece of documentation. I almost missed it because I wasn't checking my mailbox regularly.
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Zainab Ibrahim
So wait... if your employer contests your claim, does that automatically trigger adjudication? I just filed my initial claim yesterday after being laid off (healthcare admin position), and I'm worried my employer might fight it even though they clearly told me it was a position elimination. Should I be uploading documentation proactively or wait until they ask? Sorry for the questions, I'm completely new to this process and trying to avoid delays.
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Miguel Castro
•Yes, when an employer contests any element of your claim, it typically triggers adjudication. This happens in approximately 25-30% of claims filed in Washington. It's absolutely a good idea to proactively upload documentation supporting your case - things like termination letters stating position elimination, emails discussing the layoff, performance reviews showing good standing, etc. You can upload these through your eServices account under the "Upload a Document" option. Keep in mind that even with perfect documentation, most claims that enter adjudication will take at least 3-4 weeks to resolve under current ESD processing timelines.
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Zainab Ibrahim
•Thank you! I'll upload my termination letter and the email from HR about the department restructuring right away. Fingers crossed my employer doesn't contest anything. The anxiety of waiting is already getting to me.
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Dylan Evans
did u have to pay taxes on that backpay or does esd take it out already? asking cuz i might be looking at similar situation
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Fatima Al-Mansour
•I chose to have taxes withheld when I first filed my claim (there's a checkbox for this during the application). They take out 10% for federal taxes. If you didn't select that option, you'll need to pay taxes on it when you file next year.
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Connor O'Neill
my brother in law waited 12 weeks last year and then got denied anyway so consider yourself lucky! the whole system is designed to make people give up i swear.
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Sofia Gomez
Quick update on my similar situation - I actually just got my approval today! Only took 4 weeks total in adjudication. I think what helped was I called and spoke with an ESD rep last week who noticed my employer hadn't responded to their inquiry yet, so they pushed it through without waiting any longer. For anyone stuck in adjudication, it might be worth calling to check if they're still waiting on something that could be expedited.
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Fatima Al-Mansour
•That's awesome news! Congrats! And great tip about calling to check on the status - I wish I had done that earlier in the process.
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