How to end an unemployment claim with Washington ESD - confused about the process

Congratulations on the job! You definitely need to report your return to work on your next weekly claim. Don't just stop filing - that can create issues with Washington ESD later. When you file your weekly claim for the week you started working, report your first day of work and any wages earned.

Thanks! So I should file one more weekly claim and report the job start date on that one?

Exactly. Report the exact date you started working and Washington ESD will automatically close your claim.

Wait I thought you had to call them to close it? I've been putting off calling for weeks because I can never get through to anyone at Washington ESD.

No you don't need to call. The system closes automatically when you report return to work on your weekly claim. Calling Washington ESD is nearly impossible anyway with their phone volume.

Oh that's a relief! I was dreading trying to get through on the phone.

I had the same issue last month trying to reach Washington ESD about closing my claim properly. Spent hours calling and kept getting hung up on. Finally found this service called Claimyr that actually got me through to an agent in like 20 minutes. They have a website at claimyr.com and there's even a demo video showing how it works at https://youtu.be/7DieNd3C7zQ. Turns out I didn't even need to call though - just had to report my work start date.

Interesting, never heard of that service. Did they charge you a lot?

They focus on getting you connected rather than cost, and it was worth it for the peace of mind. But like I said, turns out I didn't even need to call.

That sounds too good to be true. How do they get through when regular people can't?

Just to be clear - you report your FIRST day of work, not your last day of unemployment benefits. I made that mistake and it caused confusion with my claim status.

Good point! So if I start Monday I report Monday as my work start date on my weekly claim?

Yes exactly. And report any wages you earn that week too, even if it's just one day.

make sure you keep filing until you actually start the job!! I stopped filing the week before I started and Washington ESD flagged my account for some reason

Oh no! What happened? Did you get it resolved?

yeah but it took forever to fix. they thought I was working when I wasn't. just keep filing until you actually start working

One more important thing - if your new job doesn't work out within the first few weeks, you might be able to reopen your claim without having to file a whole new application. Washington ESD allows this in certain situations, but you need to contact them quickly if it happens.

This happened to my cousin. The job ended after 2 weeks and she was able to get her benefits back without starting over.

Good to know, hopefully I won't need that but it's reassuring to hear.

The Washington ESD system is so confusing about this stuff. Why don't they make it clearer what you're supposed to do when you get a job? I spent way too much time worrying about this same thing.

Right? Everything with Washington ESD is unnecessarily complicated. At least the weekly claims system walks you through reporting work.

I agree it's confusing but at least once you know the process it's pretty straightforward.

Don't forget to save all your documentation! Keep records of when you reported your work start date and wages. Sometimes Washington ESD has system glitches and you might need to prove what you reported.

Should I take screenshots of my weekly claim submission?

Yes definitely! Screenshot the confirmation page that shows you successfully submitted your claim with the work information.

I was in a similar situation and was so paranoid about messing it up that I actually used that Claimyr service someone mentioned earlier to get through to Washington ESD and confirm I was doing it right. The agent confirmed that reporting work start date on your weekly claim is all you need to do.

Was it worth using that service just for confirmation?

For my peace of mind, yes. I'm not good with this bureaucratic stuff and wanted to make sure I wasn't missing anything important.

Also just FYI - once you report work and your claim closes, you won't get any more correspondence from Washington ESD unless there's an issue. Don't expect a confirmation letter or anything like that.

That's good to know, I would have been wondering why I didn't get any kind of closure notice.

Yeah Washington ESD doesn't really do closure confirmations. No news is good news basically.

Congrats on the new job! The process is pretty simple once you know what to do. Just report your work start date and wages on your weekly claim and Washington ESD handles the rest automatically.

Thank you! This thread has been super helpful. I feel much more confident about handling this properly now.

This is exactly the kind of info that should be more obvious on the Washington ESD website.

One thing I learned the hard way - make sure your new employer knows your start date might affect when you can begin. Some people delay starting work by a day or two to maximize their final unemployment payment, but that can complicate things with both Washington ESD and your new employer.

I hadn't thought about that timing issue. I'll stick with the agreed start date to keep things simple.

Smart choice. It's not worth the complications for one extra day of benefits.

Plus your new employer might not appreciate you trying to delay your start date for unemployment reasons.

Has anyone had issues with Washington ESD claiming overpayment after reporting work? I'm always paranoid about that.

As long as you report your work start date and wages accurately, you shouldn't have overpayment issues. The problems usually come from not reporting work or reporting it incorrectly.

I had an overpayment issue but it was because I misunderstood the reporting requirements. If you're honest and accurate you should be fine.

This whole thread is making me realize I probably didn't close my claim properly last year. I just stopped filing when I got my job. Should I be worried?

If it's been over a year and you haven't heard anything from Washington ESD, you're probably fine. But you could always contact them to check if you're concerned.

Same thing happened to me and nothing came of it. Washington ESD probably closed it automatically when you stopped filing.

The anxiety around properly closing unemployment claims is real! Washington ESD makes everything feel so high-stakes and complicated when it's actually pretty straightforward once you know the steps.

Exactly how I was feeling! This thread definitely helped calm my nerves about the whole process.

Right? They should have a simple checklist on their website for people starting new jobs.