When do I get paid for my waiting week on unemployment Washington ESD?

The waiting week gets paid out when your claim ends - either when you exhaust all your benefits or when your benefit year expires. It's basically held until the very end of your claim period.

wait i thought they just never paid the waiting week period?? ive been on UI twice and never got paid for it

I had the same question last year and spent forever trying to reach someone at Washington ESD to get clarification. The phone lines are always jammed and when you do get through, you're often on hold for hours. I finally used a service called Claimyr (claimyr.com) that helped me get connected to an actual agent. They have this video demo (https://youtu.be/7DieNd3C7zQ) that explains how it works. The agent confirmed that yes, the waiting week gets paid at the end of your benefit year.

This is so typical of Washington ESD to make something simple sound complicated. They hold your waiting week payment hostage until the end just because they can. It's another way they make life harder for people who are already struggling.

Just to clarify the exact timing - your waiting week payment is issued when your benefit year ends (52 weeks from when you first filed) OR when you exhaust all 26 weeks of regular benefits, whichever comes first. If you go back to work before using all your benefits, you'd still get the waiting week paid when your benefit year expires.

I remember being so confused about this too when I first filed. The Washington ESD website doesn't really explain it clearly. I kept checking my payment history expecting to see that first week show up but it never did until my claim ended.

ok so i went back and checked my old payment history and you guys are right - there was a payment for my waiting week that came after everything else ended. i totally missed it before

One more question - does the waiting week payment amount equal what my regular weekly benefit amount was?

This whole waiting week thing seems outdated honestly. Most people filing for unemployment need money right away, not a year later.

Just wanted to follow up on the Claimyr thing since a few people asked - I ended up using it again when I had questions about my job search requirements. Really convenient when you need to actually talk to someone at Washington ESD instead of just guessing from their website.

thanks everyone for explaining this. i was worried i was missing out on money i was supposed to get. feels better knowing it's just held until the end

so basically washington esd is holding our money for a year just because? seems like they could at least pay interest on it lol

For anyone still confused about this - think of the waiting week payment as a 'bonus' payment that comes at the very end of your claim. It's money you earned but they hold it until your benefit year closes out completely.

Does anyone know if this waiting week rule applies to standby claims too? I'm on standby with my union and wasn't sure if the same rules apply.

One thing I learned from talking to the Washington ESD agent through Claimyr is that if you have multiple claims in the same benefit year, you only serve one waiting week total. So if you go back to work then get laid off again within that year, no second waiting week.

just want to say this thread was super helpful. i was stressing about whether i was missing payments but now i understand the system better

Still think it's ridiculous that Washington ESD makes this so complicated but at least now I know my money isn't just gone forever.

Thanks everyone for all the explanations! I feel much better knowing that waiting week payment is coming eventually, even if it's at the end of my claim.