How long after claiming unemployment do you get paid - Washington ESD timing?

So basically I'm looking at about 2-3 weeks total before I see anything? That's rough but good to know.

Yeah that sounds about right in my experience. The waiting period is killer when you're already tight on money.

How do I know if it's in adjudication? My account just shows 'claim under review' but I'm not sure what that means.

If it says 'adjudication in progress' that means they're investigating something. 'Claim under review' might just be the normal processing. Log into your SecureAccess Washington account and look for any alerts or actions needed.

How much does something like that cost? I'm already strapped for cash waiting for my unemployment.

It's worth it when you consider how much time you save not sitting on hold for hours. I got answers about my claim status in like 20 minutes instead of wasting whole days trying to call.

Might have to look into that if I can't figure out what's going on with my claim. Thanks for the info.

This is super important! I made this mistake early on and lost a week of benefits because I thought I couldn't file until my claim was approved.

Good to know - I'll make sure to keep filing weekly even while waiting for approval.

6 weeks?? That's insane. How did you survive that long without income?

credit cards and borrowing from family. not ideal but what else can you do

What kind of things trigger adjudication? I'm worried my claim might get flagged for something.

Common triggers include being fired vs laid off, quitting your job, having multiple employers in the base period, or issues with your identity verification. Washington ESD has to investigate these situations before approving benefits.

Oh no, I was technically fired but it was really a layoff due to budget cuts. Hope that doesn't complicate things.

That gives me hope - about 3-4 weeks total then? I can probably manage that if I'm careful with spending.

Yeah that's about right if everything goes smoothly. The hardest part is just the waiting and not knowing for sure when money will come.

That's exactly why I ended up using Claimyr - saved me so much frustration. They basically get you through the phone queue so you can talk to a real person at Washington ESD.

I've heard calling right when they open at 8am gives you the best chance, but even then it's hit or miss.

I'll try the early morning thing first but might have to look into that Claimyr option if I keep striking out.

Wait, I have to start job searching immediately? Even before I get approved for benefits?

Yes, the job search requirement starts with your first week of filing weekly claims. Make sure you're documenting everything in WorkSourceWA or you could get disqualified.

This is news to me too. Where do you find information about the specific job search requirements?

Thanks for the clarification. I better get started on that right away then.

This is all more complicated than I expected. Wish they explained this stuff better when you first file.

Monetary determination issues usually mean there's a problem with calculating your weekly benefit amount based on your work history. Could be missing wages from one of your employers or incorrect reporting.

ugh that makes sense. i had like 4 different jobs last year so probably some reporting got messed up

I had the same thing happen! You need to call Washington ESD and provide pay stubs or W2s to verify your wages. It's a pain but once they fix it your benefits get backdated.

Good to know about direct deposit being faster. I signed up for that when I filed my claim.

The debit card took like a week to arrive in the mail for me, so definitely go with direct deposit if you can.

That's reassuring about getting back payments. I was worried I'd lose out on benefits for the waiting period.

Yeah they backdate everything to when you first became unemployed, minus the one week waiting period. So you don't actually lose money, just have to wait longer to get it.

I was skeptical too at first, but when you calculate the time you're spending vs getting actual answers about your claim, it made sense for me. Plus you can see exactly how the service works in their demo video.

I just tried calling first thing this morning and got through on the second try. Sometimes you get lucky with timing.

Maybe I'll try the early morning approach a few more times before looking into other options.

How do you set up text alerts? I don't think I saw that option when I filed.

Log into your SecureAccess Washington account and look under account settings or notifications. It's somewhere in there - took me a while to find it too.

How long do you have to file an appeal? I'm worried I might need to do this.

I think it's 30 days from when you receive the disqualification notice. The instructions should be included with any negative determination they send you.

Thanks everyone for all the info. Sounds like I just need to be patient and keep doing my weekly claims. Hopefully I'll be in the 3-4 week category and not the 8-12 week one!

Good luck! The waiting is definitely the hardest part but hang in there.

That's really helpful advice about 211! I didn't know about that resource. My electric bill is due next week and I'm starting to stress about it. Will definitely call them to see what assistance might be available while I wait for my unemployment to kick in.

Another resource to check out is your local food banks - most don't require any paperwork or income verification, so you can get help immediately while waiting for benefits. Washington State also has the Basic Food program (SNAP) which can be processed faster than unemployment sometimes. The application is online through Washington Connection and can help cover groceries during this waiting period.