What reasons can you be denied unemployment in Washington? ESD just rejected my claim

There are several common reasons Washington ESD denies claims. The most frequent ones are: voluntary quit without good cause, fired for misconduct, not available for work, not actively seeking work, or insufficient work history/wages. Did you quit your job or were you actually terminated?

sometimes they deny claims for weird technicalities too. like if you didn't report some side income or if they think you weren't actually available for work during certain weeks

You really need to call Washington ESD directly to get the specific reason for your denial. The automated system doesn't always give complete information. I had a similar situation and used Claimyr.com to get through to an actual agent - they have a callback service that saved me hours of trying to call. There's even a demo video at https://youtu.be/7DieNd3C7zQ showing how it works.

The main disqualification reasons I know about are: 1) Voluntary quit without good cause 2) Fired for misconduct 3) Not available for work 4) Not actively job searching 5) Insufficient wages in base period 6) Not physically able to work 7) Refusing suitable work offers. They also sometimes deny if you don't respond to requests for information quickly enough.

ugh the washington esd system is so broken. they denied my claim twice before finally approving it. half the time they dont even tell you the real reason just some generic code

Another common reason is if they think you weren't actually unemployed through no fault of your own. Like if there's any question about whether you were really laid off vs resigned.

I got denied because I didn't complete my job search activities properly. You have to do 3 job search activities per week and log them in WorkSourceWA. Did you do that?

Wait, if you were laid off due to store closure, you might qualify for standby status which temporarily waives job search requirements. But you have to apply for it specifically.

been there done that with washington esd denials. sometimes they mess up and deny claims that should be approved. definitely appeal if you think its wrong

One thing people don't realize is that Washington ESD sometimes denies claims if you don't respond to their requests for information within the deadline. Even if you never got the notice or it went to spam.

Another reason they deny claims is if your employer contests it and claims you were fired for cause or quit voluntarily. Even if that's not true, it can trigger a denial pending investigation.

THE WHOLE SYSTEM IS DESIGNED TO DENY CLAIMS FIRST AND ASK QUESTIONS LATER!!! I had to fight for months to get benefits I was clearly entitled to. Don't give up if you know you qualify!

Don't forget about the earnings requirements during your base period. You need enough wages from covered employment. If you were part-time or seasonal, that might be an issue.

sometimes they deny if you had any disciplinary issues at work even if you weren't fired for cause. like if you had written warnings or anything like that

I've seen people get denied because they weren't available for work during certain weeks - like if you were sick, on vacation, or had other issues that made you unavailable.

Based on everything you've said, this sounds like either an error or missing information on Washington ESD's part. I'd file an appeal immediately and also try to get through to an agent. The Claimyr service mentioned earlier might be worth trying - I've heard good things about it from other people dealing with Washington ESD issues.

One more thing - make sure you keep filing your weekly claims even while appealing. If you win the appeal, you can get backpay, but only for weeks you filed claims.

just went through this whole mess myself. turned out washington esd had wrong information from my employer and once i got that corrected everything went through fine. the key is finding out exactly what they think happened vs what actually happened