Washington ESD - how does severance pay affect unemployment benefits?

That makes sense, so I should definitely file now to get the claim started even if I won't receive payments immediately?

Exactly! File as soon as possible because there's a one-week waiting period anyway, and you want to establish your claim date. The sooner you file, the sooner you'll start receiving benefits once the severance period ends.

You're right - vacation payout is considered wages and gets deducted dollar for dollar. Severance is treated as dismissal pay and they calculate a weekly equivalent based on your normal work schedule.

Thanks for clarifying! I was so confused when I was dealing with this. The Washington ESD rep I finally got on the phone explained it but it took forever to reach someone.

If you're having trouble reaching Washington ESD by phone, check out claimyr.com - they have a service that helps you get through to agents faster. There's even a demo video at https://youtu.be/7DieNd3C7zQ showing how it works. Saved me hours of calling when I had severance questions.

COBRA payments don't affect your UI benefits at all - that's just health insurance continuation. Stock options are trickier and depend on when they vest and how they're structured. You'll definitely want to discuss that specific situation with Washington ESD.

Ok good to know about COBRA. The stock thing is complicated because some vest monthly. I guess I'll have to call and explain the whole situation.

That's exactly what I was hoping to hear! Did you have to do anything special when you filed to report the severance?

Yeah, there's a section in the application where you report dismissal pay. Be honest about the total amount and the time period it covers. They'll do the math for you.

Just make sure you keep filing your weekly claims even during the severance period! I made the mistake of stopping and then had to reopen my claim later.

I know right? I spent 3 hours on hold just to ask about my severance calculation. Ridiculous.

That's why I started using Claimyr after my first horrible experience trying to reach them. Much easier than sitting on hold forever.

So in my case with 12 weeks of severance, they'll divide the total by 12 to get my weekly severance amount?

Correct! And if that weekly amount is higher than your UI benefit, you won't receive UI payments during those 12 weeks. But your claim stays active and benefits resume automatically after.

This is super helpful info. I wish they explained it this clearly on their website instead of all that confusing legal language.

If you weren't receiving UI payments during the severance period anyway, then no - nothing to pay back. But you should report the new job when you file your weekly claims.

Makes sense. And I assume the severance doesn't affect the new job at all, that's just between me and my old employer.

How did you get that fixed? Did you have to contact your old employer or Washington ESD?

Both! Had to get my employer to send corrected documentation to Washington ESD. Took about 3 weeks to sort out but they did backpay me for the weeks I should have received benefits.

Situations like that are when having a way to actually reach Washington ESD agents becomes crucial. I've had good luck with claimyr.com for getting through when I need to discuss complicated issues like employer reporting errors.

Good to know! My package includes 3 months of health insurance continuation but sounds like that won't affect my UI timeline.

Exactly right. Benefits continuation is separate from the cash severance for UI purposes.

Wait, so I need to file weekly claims even during the weeks when my severance means I won't get any UI payment?

YES! Keep filing every week. The system needs you to maintain the claim even when payments are $0 due to severance offset.

This is absolutely correct and very important. Your claim stays active only if you keep filing weekly, even during severance weeks with zero payment.

Perfect summary! You've got it exactly right.

Yeah this thread has been super helpful. I feel much more confident about filing my claim now.

Agreed! This forum is way more helpful than their official website sometimes.

I'll definitely keep that in mind if I run into any issues with my claim. Thanks for mentioning it!

Yeah I've heard good things about services like that. Sometimes you just need to talk to someone who can look at your actual account and explain what's happening.

The payment schedule doesn't matter - they still calculate it as total severance divided by the weeks it's meant to cover. Whether you get it all at once or spread out, the UI benefit offset calculation stays the same.

Perfect, that's what I was hoping. Thanks for clarifying!