Why has my Washington ESD unemployment not been paid - claim approved but no payments

I've checked multiple times and there are no alerts or pending issues showing. Everything looks normal except for the $0 payments.

Same thing happened to my brother last month. Turned out there was a backend processing issue that wasn't showing up in his account.

Yes, I'm answering all the questions about job search activities and reporting no earnings. I've been following the same process each week.

Double check that you're reporting your job search contacts correctly. Washington ESD requires 3 job search activities per week and if you're not logging them properly it can delay payments.

How much does that service cost? I'm already strapped for cash waiting for these payments.

It's worth checking out - they focus on getting you connected rather than charging huge fees. Way better than spending hours on hold and getting nowhere.

Never heard of this before but might be worth trying if regular calling isn't working.

I understand the frustration but there are usually specific reasons for payment delays that can be resolved once you talk to someone.

Easy to say when you're not behind on rent! This system is designed to make people give up.

Good point - I'll double check my banking info in the account settings. Could a small typo in my account number cause this?

Absolutely. Even one wrong digit will cause the deposit to bounce back and then you have to wait for them to mail a check instead.

This happened to me - took an extra week to get a paper check after the direct deposit failed.

It's regular unemployment after being laid off from my job. Not standby or anything special.

Ok so regular UI should process pretty quickly once approved. Definitely sounds like there's a backend issue.

All weeks show as payable with my weekly benefit amount listed, but then the actual payment column shows $0.

That's weird - if it shows payable you should definitely be getting money. Sounds like a system glitch.

Yeah that suggests the issue is in the payment processing rather than eligibility. You really need to talk to someone at Washington ESD.

I don't have any of those issues - no liens or child support obligations that would cause holds.

Then it's probably just a processing delay or technical issue that needs manual review by Washington ESD staff.

You probably didn't make a mistake. Washington ESD has been having lots of processing delays lately.

That's somewhat reassuring I guess. Still need to pay bills though!

That's exactly the kind of thing I'm worried about - some behind-the-scenes issue that's not visible to me. Going to check out that service.

How long did it take to get connected through them?

Way faster than calling directly. Didn't have to sit on hold for hours just to get disconnected.

I get the frustration but most delays have legitimate reasons - they just don't communicate them well.

Legitimate or not, people need money to live. The communication is terrible.

I'll try that - worth a shot even though it seems too simple to fix the problem.

Actually had this work for me once when my claim status wasn't updating properly.

I've been doing my job searches and logging them each week. No appointments scheduled that I can see.

Then it's probably just a processing issue. Hopefully it resolves soon.

How would I check if my SSN is correct in their system? I can't see it displayed in my account for security reasons.

You'd have to call and have them verify it. That's why getting through to an agent is so important.

No error messages - weekly claims submit fine and show as completed in my account history.

Weird. Definitely sounds like you need to talk to someone at Washington ESD to investigate.

That gives me some hope that it might resolve on its own, but I can't really afford to just wait indefinitely.

Yeah waiting without any communication is the worst part of this whole process.

Good point - I did move recently so I'll double check that my address is updated correctly.

Definitely do that. Address issues can cause all sorts of problems with benefit payments.

Let me know how it goes! I'm considering trying it too since normal calling hasn't worked.

Will do - anything is better than spending hours on hold just to get disconnected.

That's smart advice. I'll start keeping a log of all my attempts to resolve this.

Documentation is so important when dealing with government agencies. Good advice.

Exactly! I just want to know what's wrong so I can fix it or at least have realistic expectations about timing.

The lack of transparency in these systems is really frustrating for everyone involved.