What is a good reason to appeal unemployment disqualification in Washington ESD?

Yes, absolutely appeal this! Misconduct vs. layoff/budget cuts is a huge difference in Washington ESD's eyes. You'll need documentation like your termination letter, any emails about budget cuts or position elimination, and witness statements if you have coworkers who can verify the real reason. The burden is on your employer to prove misconduct, not on you to prove innocence.

I had a similar situation last year. My employer claimed I quit when I was actually laid off. It took forever to get through to Washington ESD to straighten it out, but I eventually found claimyr.com which helped me get connected to an actual agent who could look at my case. They have a video demo at https://youtu.be/7DieNd3C7zQ that shows how it works. Made the whole process way less stressful.

The Washington ESD appeal process is designed to catch exactly these kinds of employer reporting errors. Common good reasons to appeal include: employer reported wrong reason for separation, you were actually laid off not fired, employer retaliated against you for filing workers comp, or you quit for good cause like unsafe working conditions or harassment.

ugh the same thing happened to my friend!! her boss totally lied about why she got fired and she had to fight it for months. the system is so messed up, employers can just say whatever they want and Washington ESD believes them automatically

What exactly did your termination paperwork say? Sometimes there's a difference between what they told you verbally and what they officially reported to Washington ESD. If your paperwork says 'position eliminated' or 'reduction in force' but they reported misconduct, that's clear evidence for your appeal.

I'm dealing with something similar but my employer said I abandoned my job when I was actually in the hospital. Has anyone appealed for medical reasons before?

The Washington ESD appeal form is pretty straightforward but make sure you file it before the deadline. You only get 30 days from when you received the disqualification notice. Don't wait until the last minute because if you miss that deadline, you're basically out of luck.

Just want to add that during the appeal process, you should still file your weekly claims even though you're not getting paid. Washington ESD requires this to maintain your claim and if you win the appeal, you'll get backpay for those weeks.

Another thing - if you win your appeal, Washington ESD will contact your employer to verify they're not going to contest the decision further. Sometimes employers drop their objection once they realize they have to provide actual proof of misconduct.

I used to work in HR and saw this all the time. Often it's just a miscommunication between whoever handled your termination and whoever reported it to Washington ESD. Budget cuts/layoffs should be coded differently than misconduct terminations. Your appeal should be pretty cut and dried if you have that email evidence.

One more tip - when you have your phone hearing (if it goes that far), speak clearly and stick to facts. Don't get emotional even if your employer says things that aren't true. Let your documentation speak for itself.

If anyone's having trouble getting through to Washington ESD during their appeal process, I found Claimyr really helpful. It's way easier than trying to call the main number over and over. Really took the stress out of getting updates on my case status.

Just to be clear for anyone reading this - you can appeal Washington ESD decisions for reasons like: wrong separation reason reported by employer, employer retaliation, constructive dismissal (forced to quit), medical issues that prevented work, domestic violence situations, or if you quit for good cause. The key is having documentation.

Update us on how your appeal goes! I think with that budget cut email evidence you should have a strong case. Washington ESD appeals are intimidating but they're there to protect workers from exactly this kind of employer misreporting.