Washington ESD priorities - which type of unemployment gets the most attention?

That makes sense why my claim with multiple part-time jobs took forever to get approved while my friend's straightforward layoff got processed in days.

Yeah the fraud detection stuff definitely gets priority. I had to provide like 15 different documents just because I had some 1099 work mixed in with my W2 job.

Exactly right. The longer someone stays on UI, the more intensive the job search monitoring becomes. They want people back to work ASAP.

This is why I'm dreading when I hit week 20. I heard they start requiring like 5 job contacts per week instead of 3.

Wait really? I'm only at week 12 but good to know what's coming. Do they actually verify all those job contacts?

Never heard of that before, is it legit? I'm so tired of getting disconnected after waiting 2 hours on the phone.

Yeah it's totally legit, they have a website at claimyr.com. Basically they handle the calling for you and conference you in when they get through to an agent. Saved me so much frustration.

I might have to try this, I've been trying to reach them about my adjudication status for 3 weeks now with no luck.

Yes! My husband is in construction and his claims always go through super fast because Washington ESD knows the seasonal patterns in that industry.

That's because seasonal workers often qualify for standby status, which reduces the job search requirements and processing time.

That's interesting, I hadn't thought about it from that angle. Makes sense they'd want to prioritize helping people whose skills became obsolete.

Yeah and those people often qualify for extended benefits and training programs that cost the state way more than regular UI payments.

This explains why there's so much emphasis on WorkSourceWA integration. They want people in retraining programs, not just collecting benefits.

There might be some truth to that, though Washington ESD is supposed to operate independently of political pressure.

LOL 'independently' sure. Every government agency responds to political priorities whether they admit it or not.

That makes total sense. A hundred people losing jobs at once is way different than scattered individual claims.

So if my company does layoffs in batches, it would actually be better to be in a larger group?

Generally yes, mass layoffs (20+ people) get expedited processing and additional support services.

This is why they maintain that trust fund balance. Gotta be ready for recession-level claim volumes.

Remember 2020? The system completely crashed because they weren't prepared for that scale of unemployment. Now they're probably over-preparing for the next crisis.

Yes! My quit for harassment took 8 weeks to adjudicate because they had to investigate the whole situation with my former employer.

Voluntary separations are complex because Washington ESD has to determine if the reason meets their legal standard for good cause. It's very fact-specific.

I had to provide text messages, emails, and witness statements to prove my quit was justified. Way more complicated than a regular layoff claim.

How much does something like that cost? I'm worried about spending money when I'm already unemployed.

They're pretty reasonable and honestly it was worth it just to save the time and stress. Way cheaper than missing work to spend all day calling Washington ESD.

Can you explain the difference? I keep seeing these terms but I'm not sure what makes unemployment 'structural' vs other types.

Frictional is just the normal time between jobs when people are transitioning. Structural is when entire industries or job categories disappear permanently, like coal mining or certain manufacturing jobs.

Exactly. Frictional unemployment actually indicates a healthy job market where people feel confident about finding new positions.

That would make sense. Better to catch problems early than wait until you have another 2020 situation.

Washington ESD does publish quarterly reports on unemployment trends, so they're definitely monitoring these patterns closely.

I get the frustration but there's probably good reasons for all the documentation requirements. They're handling billions in taxpayer money.

yeah i know but sometimes it feels like the process is more important to them than actually helping people

Thanks for starting this thread. Really helpful to understand the bigger picture of how these decisions get made.

Agreed. It's a complex system trying to serve multiple stakeholders with limited resources.

I've seen this mentioned a few times in this thread. Might be worth trying since I've been stuck in phone hell for weeks.

Same here, I'm going to look into this. Anything has to be better than the current situation.