Washington ESD - how many weeks does it take to get unemployment approved?

Thanks! I've been doing the weekly claims online. Should I be worried that it's been a week with no updates?

One week is nothing to worry about. The system updates pretty slowly and they're probably just verifying your wages with your employer.

That's reassuring! Did you get any notifications when it was approved or did the money just show up?

I got an email saying my claim was approved, then the payment showed up about 3 days later.

Is this legit? I've been trying to call Washington ESD for days and can never get through.

Yeah it's real. I was skeptical too but it actually worked. Way better than spending my whole day redialing the same number.

Good to know this exists if I need it. Hopefully my claim goes through without needing to call.

5 weeks usually means there's an issue with your claim that needs adjudication. Did you check if there are any pending issues in your account?

It just says 'under review' with no details. I've tried calling but the phone system hangs up on me every time.

That's exactly the situation where Claimyr helps. They can get you through to find out what the holdup is.

10 days is still normal range. I'd give it another week before worrying.

same here, filed 12 days ago and nothing yet but friends say thats normal

This is super helpful. None of those apply to me so hopefully I'm in the 2-3 week range.

What about if you were a contractor before getting laid off from regular employment? Does that complicate things?

Yes, contractor work can complicate it because they need to verify you weren't actually an employee for UI purposes.

Seriously try Claimyr if you need to talk to someone. It's worth it when you're stressed about money.

Have you checked if there are any local WorkSource offices that can help? Sometimes they can see more details about what's holding up your claim.

I'll try both suggestions. At this point I need to try everything.

That gives me hope! Similar situation to mine.

Wow that's fast! Mine took 3 weeks but I had worked in Oregon before moving to Washington so they had to verify my wages.

Day of the week doesn't matter for processing time. That's just a myth.

I filed on a Friday and got approved in normal time, so probably not true.

That's good to hear from someone who sees this from the employer side.

Do employers usually respond quickly when Washington ESD contacts them for verification?

Most employers respond within a few days. It's in their interest to respond quickly so their UI tax rates don't get affected.

6 weeks definitely indicates an adjudication issue. Have you looked at your correspondence section to see if they sent you any requests for information?

Nothing in correspondence. Just says under review with no details whatsoever.

This is exactly why services like Claimyr exist. When you can't get answers through normal channels, you need help getting through to them.

Congrats! I'm at day 12 now so hopefully mine comes through soon too.

Did you get the full back pay for all the weeks you filed while waiting?

Yes, got paid for all the weeks I had filed claims for. That was a relief.

Yeah quit situations are always complicated. They have to determine if it was for good cause or not.

Good thing I was clearly laid off then. No ambiguity in my case.

Awesome! Glad it worked out in the normal timeframe.

Congrats! Now you can breathe easier about the bills.

This thread was super helpful to read. I just filed yesterday so good to know what to expect.