Why is my Washington ESD unemployment disqualified - need help understanding the reason

You need to log into your Washington ESD account and look for any determination letters or notices. They usually send a detailed explanation of why you were disqualified. Check under your messages or documents section.

this happened to me too!! no explanation at all just suddenly disqualified. tried calling for 2 weeks straight and couldnt get through to anyone

There are several common reasons for disqualification: voluntary quit without good cause, fired for misconduct, not able and available for work, or failing to meet job search requirements. Did any of these apply to your situation?

I had success using Claimyr to get through to Washington ESD when I couldn't reach them myself. They have a service that calls on your behalf and gets you connected to an actual person. Check out claimyr.com - there's even a video demo at https://youtu.be/7DieNd3C7zQ showing how it works. Might be worth trying since you need to speak with someone to understand your disqualification.

Washington ESD is absolutely terrible about communication. They'll disqualify you and then make you jump through hoops to find out why. It's intentionally confusing to discourage people from appealing.

You should also check if there are any outstanding issues or pending adjudications on your claim. Sometimes a disqualification appears while they're still reviewing something, and it might get reversed once the adjudication is complete.

happened to my brother last year, turned out they had the wrong separation date from his employer and thought he quit instead of being laid off

Make sure you're continuing to file your weekly claims even while disqualified. If you win an appeal later, you could lose benefits for any weeks you didn't file during the disqualification period.

Check your email including spam folder for any notices from Washington ESD. Sometimes their emails end up in spam and contain important information about your claim status.

UGH this is exactly what happened to me 3 months ago! Still fighting it. The whole system is designed to deny as many people as possible and hope you give up.

You have the right to appeal any disqualification decision. Even if you can't get through by phone right now, start the appeal process online or by mail to protect your rights. You typically have 30 days from the date of the determination to file an appeal.

Try calling the Washington ESD customer service line first thing Monday morning right at 8am when they open. Sometimes you can get through easier at opening time.

Could be an identity verification issue. If there's any question about your identity or someone else filed a claim using your information, they'll disqualify you while investigating.

same boat here, disqualified last week with zero explanation. this is so stressful when you're already struggling financially

Whatever you do, don't let this drag on too long. Benefit disqualifications can affect your eligibility for future claims if not resolved properly. Get on the phone with them ASAP.

Document everything - when you called, what times, what you tried. If this goes to an appeal hearing, having records of your attempts to resolve the issue will help your case.

Check if your employer contested your claim. Sometimes employers will contest unemployment claims weeks or months after you initially file, which can trigger a disqualification while they review the contest.

I know someone who got disqualified because they made an error on one of their weekly claims and Washington ESD interpreted it as fraud. Even innocent mistakes can trigger disqualifications.

Update: I finally got through using that Claimyr service mentioned earlier. Turns out there was an issue with my job separation information that my former employer had submitted incorrectly. They're fixing it now but it's going to take 2-3 weeks to process. At least I finally know what happened!

I'm dealing with a similar situation right now - got disqualified last week with no clear explanation in my account. Reading through all these responses is both helpful and frustrating because it seems like this is such a common problem with Washington ESD. I'm going to try the Claimyr service that several people mentioned since calling directly hasn't worked for me either. It's ridiculous that we have to pay a third party service just to get through to our own state unemployment office, but at this point I just need answers. Thanks everyone for sharing your experiences - at least I know I'm not alone in this mess.