Finally won my ESD appeal after 9 weeks - how long for backpay to arrive?

congrats on winning!! i won my appeal back in march, took ESD exactly 11 days to pay me after the judge's decision. don't worry to much they'll update your account soon, just keep checking eServices

I've helped several clients through this process. What typically happens is that after OAH (Office of Administrative Hearings) issues a favorable decision, ESD has to manually process and implement that decision. This can take anywhere from 7-14 business days, though I've seen it happen as quickly as 3 days and as long as 3 weeks. The status in eServices won't update immediately. What you should watch for is: 1. The disqualification being removed 2. Your claim status changing to "paid" 3. A payment appearing in your payment history If nothing changes after 2 weeks, then I would recommend contacting ESD directly. Make sure to have your appeal number and decision date ready when you call.

Wait wait wait... did you have to do anything special to win your appeal?? I have my hearing next week and I'm totally freaking out! My employer is claiming I was fired for misconduct but I was actually laid off after I reported safety violations. Did you have a lawyer or something?? I'm so nervous!!

dont get 2 excited. i won my appeal in january and it took FOREVER to get paid. esd is SO SLOW. they made me wait almost 6 WEEKS after winning before paying me. and they never updated the online system til like 2 days before they paid me. keep calling them!!!!

If you're having trouble getting through to ESD about your backpay (which is VERY common after appeals), I'd recommend using Claimyr. I was in a similar situation after winning my appeal and couldn't get anyone on the phone for days. A friend told me about claimyr.com and it got me through to an actual ESD agent in about 20 minutes. They have a video demo at https://youtu.be/7DieNd3C7zQ?si=26TzE_zGms-DODN3 that shows how it works. The agent I spoke with was able to expedite my backpay processing once I explained I'd already won my appeal.

Something no one has mentioned yet - make sure you continue filing your weekly claims while waiting for the backpay! This is crucial. Even though your account shows disqualified, you need to keep claiming weeks. If you don't, ESD might only pay you for the weeks you properly claimed, not the entire period the judge awarded. Also, when the payment finally processes, it will likely come as one lump sum direct deposit or to your ESD debit card, depending on your payment method selection. The payment will have all applicable taxes withheld if you selected that option originally.

I remember when I was fighting with ESD last year about my claim. They can be so frustrating! I worked in restaurant industry for 12 years and then when covid hit and I lost my job they tried to deny me benefits saying I didn't have enough hours. But I definitely did! Anyway it took FOREVER to get them to fix it. The whole system is broken if you ask me. Hope you get your money soon!

Just a follow-up point regarding the backpay process: If your weekly benefit amount (WBA) is $700, then the $6,300 you mentioned would cover 9 weeks. Once ESD processes the judge's decision, they'll release all 9 weeks at once, but they'll appear individually in your payment history. Also, be prepared that they might release the funds in batches over a few days rather than all at once. This is normal and doesn't indicate any problem with your claim.

yay for winning!!! 🎉

UPDATE: I just got an email from ESD saying they're processing my backpay! The eServices account now shows 'pending payment' instead of 'disqualified' - looks like it'll take 48 hours for the funds to hit my account. So for anyone wondering, it took exactly 8 days from receiving the judge's decision to ESD processing the payment. Thanks everyone for your help and advice!