Washington ESD claim denied despite unemployment at 50 year low - confused about eligibility

That makes sense I guess, but I definitely worked enough hours. Maybe I need to look at my earnings again.

The base period is tricky - it's not the last 18 months, it's a specific calendar quarter calculation that Washington ESD uses.

How do I find out what my base period earnings were? The denial letter just has some numbers but doesn't explain how they calculated it.

You can log into your Washington ESD account and look at your monetary determination, or call them to get a breakdown. The phone system is terrible though.

Good luck getting through on the phone! I've been trying for weeks just to check my claim status.

Never heard of that before. Is it legit? I'm desperate enough to try anything at this point.

Yeah it's totally legitimate. They don't ask for any personal info, just your phone number so they can connect you when an agent picks up. Saved me so much frustration.

Interesting, might have to try this myself. The Washington ESD phone system is absolutely broken.

That's not really how it works. Staffing levels aren't directly tied to unemployment rates like that.

well it FEELS like they have fewer people working there when you can never get through

I did have to take about 3 weeks off unpaid when my dad was in the hospital last summer. Could that affect it?

Possibly, depending on which quarter that fell in. You really need to see the detailed calculation from Washington ESD to understand what happened.

How would I know if there's an error?

compare your pay stubs to what washington esd has on file, if there's a big difference then something got reported wrong

Is the appeal process complicated? I've never done anything like that before.

It's not too bad. You can do it online through your Washington ESD account or mail in the form. Just explain why you think the decision was wrong and include any supporting documents.

I won my appeal last year after initially being denied. Took about 6 weeks but I got all my back pay.

It is needlessly complex, but once you understand the basics it makes more sense. The base period calculation is the most confusing part for most people.

RIGHT?? And then they wonder why people get frustrated and give up

I'm going to try it. At this point I need to talk to someone who can actually explain what happened.

Good call. When you do get through, ask them to go through your base period calculation step by step. That should clear up the confusion.

Thanks, I needed to hear that. I was starting to feel like maybe I didn't deserve benefits because the economy is doing well.

Absolutely not! You paid into this system through your taxes. If you qualify, you've earned those benefits.

Sure! The base period is the first four of the last five completed calendar quarters before you file your claim. So if you file in March 2025, your base period would be October 2023 through September 2024.

That's really confusing. Why don't they just look at the last year of work?

It's designed to use complete quarters so the calculations are consistent, but I agree it's not intuitive.

I've heard that too but I don't know if it's actually true or just seems that way because people talk about denials more than approvals.

Denial rates can fluctuate based on various factors, but the eligibility requirements haven't changed recently.

Awesome! See, I told you Claimyr works great. Glad you got it sorted out.

Great news! Wage reporting errors are more common than people think. Good thing you followed up instead of just accepting the denial.

This is exactly why it's important to question these decisions when something doesn't seem right. Glad it worked out!

Definitely try it. The agent I talked to was really helpful and explained everything clearly.

Yeah, once you actually get through to a human they're usually pretty good at resolving issues. It's just getting connected that's the nightmare.

Yep, I was overthinking it. It was just a simple reporting error that had nothing to do with the economy.

Good reminder that individual claims are evaluated based on specific criteria, not general economic conditions.

Exactly why I wanted to post the update. Don't just accept a denial if something seems wrong - dig deeper!