General EB Discussion - Ongoing

Hello UIO !!!!! Listen, i needed to get your input in something most important: I always watch State of the Union on CNN, and today, the first interview they had was with Christine Romer, Chair Council of the White House on Economic Matters, and they asked her, with the contiinuing situation with unemployment the way it is, if they had considered a new Extension on unemployment Benefits, and SHE SAID THEY WERE Working with Congress on Getting a new extension!!!!!!! She said it several times, so, hve you heard anything on this? There is indeed something cooking in the WH Burner with reference to this as when the EB ends, there are still millions that will drown if they are not helped. Give me your input on this, if you wanna watch it again, they will repeat the program at I believe either 8 or 9 pm EST tonite. It is the very first interview. !!!!!!!!

Maggi MIami wrote:Hello UIO !!!!! Listen, i needed to get your input in something most important: I always watch State of the Union on CNN, and today, the first interview they had was with Christine Romer, Chair Council of the White House on Economic Matters, and they asked her, with the contiinuing situation with unemployment the way it is, if they had considered a new Extension on unemployment Benefits, and SHE SAID THEY WERE Working with Congress on Getting a new extension!!!!!!! She said it several times, so, hve you heard anything on this? There is indeed something cooking in the WH Burner with reference to this as when the EB ends, there are still millions that will drown if they are not helped. Give me your input on this, if you wanna watch it again, they will repeat the program at I believe either 8 or 9 pm EST tonite. It is the very first interview. !!!!!!!!

Heya Maggi, look on the main page under the Senate Bills etc thread, we have posted about the possible 2009 Fall Extension there

fANTASTIC SECTION! Thanks UIO as always! I read the whole thing, i need to ask you one thing, though, ....i see that they mention the EUC, but, should they finally put it thru, will all of us on EB be considered for that fourth extension also????? I would think we would be in it too, right? what do u think?

Maggi MIami wrote:fANTASTIC SECTION! Thanks UIO as always! I read the whole thing, i need to ask you one thing, though, ....i see that they mention the EUC, but, should they finally put it thru, will all of us on EB be considered for that fourth extension also????? I would think we would be in it too, right? what do u think?

From what I understand Maggi, I think this is to just extend the current programs through 2010. The EB we just collected was set to expire the end of December of this year. Many people are still on their regular claim or EUC and once those two exhausted many people would be into 2010 already and couldnt collect the EB 3rd tier. Im scouring for more information about this, if anyone else has anything they have learned please post in the Senate Bills etc thread under the 2009 Fall Extension topic, thanks

I am sure this has happened to someone else but I can't seem to find the comment. I have been going back and forth with my EB claim. I was finally able to claim all my retro weeks last week. However, they have not paid out yet I kept calling every day til yesterday and the issue seems to have been that I have worked part time for a company that calls me when they need me. I thought I had resolved that issue yesterday as I was supposed to claim last week today. The system allowed me to claim one week (last week) but I only paid me for the week I was able to claim today. No info on my retro weeks! What the ---- is wrong? has anyone been through this??? Please help!! I am losing my mind.

Hello! Can someone please help? I exhausted all the tiers Monday of last week and have been trying to apply for Extended Bens. the computer shows zero balance in my account but if i start the online EB application , a message comes up saying ineligible, that my social sec number is not eligible. My initial claim was in June of 06 and everything was alright until i got recertification for 2009.

I no longer have internet so im on a friend's computer. My phone might go next, but Im hoping for a call-back from one of the Workforce people i called last week and this Mon. Maybe could the state's computer be slow in recognizing im just a week off emergency benefits? TIA for any advice... Great site too, thanks for the good info!!

surfer wrote:Hello! Can someone please help? I exhausted all the tiers Monday of last week and have been trying to apply for Extended Bens. the computer shows zero balance in my account but if i start the online EB application , a message comes up saying ineligible, that my social sec number is not eligible. My initial claim was in June of 06 and everything was alright until i got recertification for 2009.

I no longer have internet so im on a friend's computer. My phone might go next, but Im hoping for a call-back from one of the Workforce people i called last week and this Mon. Maybe could the state's computer be slow in recognizing im just a week off emergency benefits? TIA for any advice... Great site too, thanks for the good info!!

When did your new benefit year start in 2009? When you say you exhausted all tiers do you mean the regular claim and then the EUC?

I would suggest you call Mel on the number posted under the AWI Contacts section.

waiting in St Lucie wrote:I am sure this has happened to someone else but I can't seem to find the comment. I have been going back and forth with my EB claim. I was finally able to claim all my retro weeks last week. However, they have not paid out yet I kept calling every day til yesterday and the issue seems to have been that I have worked part time for a company that calls me when they need me. I thought I had resolved that issue yesterday as I was supposed to claim last week today. The system allowed me to claim one week (last week) but I only paid me for the week I was able to claim today. No info on my retro weeks! What the ---- is wrong? has anyone been through this??? Please help!! I am losing my mind.

I would call Mel also on this issue, maybe they suspended payment on the retro weeks because of the part time job. She would be able to pull wage transcripts and see if this is the reason for the suspension hold.

Unemployed In Orlando wrote:

surfer wrote:Hello! Can someone please help? I exhausted all the tiers Monday of last week and have been trying to apply for Extended Bens. the computer shows zero balance in my account but if i start the online EB application , a message comes up saying ineligible, that my social sec number is not eligible. My initial claim was in June of 06 and everything was alright until i got recertification for 2009.

I no longer have internet so im on a friend's computer. My phone might go next, but Im hoping for a call-back from one of the Workforce people i called last week and this Mon. Maybe could the state's computer be slow in recognizing im just a week off emergency benefits? TIA for any advice... Great site too, thanks for the good info!!

When did your new benefit year start in 2009? When you say you exhausted all tiers do you mean the regular claim and then the EUC?

I would suggest you call Mel on the number posted under the AWI Contacts section.

Melody? Shes been helping a lot of us in South FL and I have three calls into her, so she must be really busy. Tried two other people as well. I meant i used my regular claim and then EuC.. I'll call again early, but after that, maybe i can apply for EB by mail. The 2009 year started June 22th i think. i'm moving so everything is a mess. thanks

surfer wrote:

Unemployed In Orlando wrote:

surfer wrote:Hello! Can someone please help? I exhausted all the tiers Monday of last week and have been trying to apply for Extended Bens. the computer shows zero balance in my account but if i start the online EB application , a message comes up saying ineligible, that my social sec number is not eligible. My initial claim was in June of 06 and everything was alright until i got recertification for 2009.

I no longer have internet so im on a friend's computer. My phone might go next, but Im hoping for a call-back from one of the Workforce people i called last week and this Mon. Maybe could the state's computer be slow in recognizing im just a week off emergency benefits? TIA for any advice... Great site too, thanks for the good info!!

When did your new benefit year start in 2009? When you say you exhausted all tiers do you mean the regular claim and then the EUC?

I would suggest you call Mel on the number posted under the AWI Contacts section.

Melody? Shes been helping a lot of us in South FL and I have three calls into her, so she must be really busy. Tried two other people as well. I meant i used my regular claim and then EuC.. I'll call again early, but after that, maybe i can apply for EB by mail. The 2009 year started June 22th i think. i'm moving so everything is a mess. thanks

Sorry but not sure Im making sense of this, your new benefit year began 6/22/09? How many weeks did you get with your new year? Also the EUC 2nd tier adds 13-20 weeks, so mathematically there is no way you should have exhausted your benefits for your new year claim and the 2nd tier EUC. If this was a brand new claim that started 6/22/09 then you should still be on your new benefit year claim. (New benefit year = a new claim for unemployment from scratch). We need clearer info in order to help you out.

Sorry for being unclear. I was just reminded that i don't have an eligibility letter for 2009. I started claiming in 2008. Its been over a year. My most recent letter said to claim wks on 7-28-09. This letter also said " Due to the change of the quarter, your claim is being reviewed for eligibility on regular employment compensation. If eligible, paymnets will be made on the new claim at the new weekly amount. If not, payments will continue on on the EUC program until available credits are exhausted or the program ends. " I exhausted available credits, I had no new employers since orig claim in '08... My account reads 0 and when i go online to apply for EB i'm told "SS number is ineligible".

surfer wrote:Sorry for being unclear. I was just reminded that i don't have an eligibility letter for 2009. I started claiming in 2008. Its been over a year. My most recent letter said to claim wks on 7-28-09. This letter also said " Due to the change of the quarter, your claim is being reviewed for eligibility on regular employment compensation. If eligible, paymnets will be made on the new claim at the new weekly amount. If not, payments will continue on on the EUC program until available credits are exhausted or the program ends. " I exhausted available credits, I had no new employers since orig claim in '08... My account reads 0 and when i go online to apply for EB i'm told "SS number is ineligible".

Ok yup, now I got ya Sounds like the system tried to recertify you, I am dealing with the same issue but had a 2 week temp position which has entirely sent me into a clusterfuck. I think all you will need to do is get in touch with Melody or someone with access to the wage transcripts. Then they will be able to see you havent earned any wages since your original claim last year and pull the suspension for you. Every quarter the computer checks to see if you have worked and earned any money in the prior 2 quarters. Since you just claimed 7/28 it might take another few days for the EB app to accept your ssn, I wouldnt wait for that though, try calling and getting the hold lifted. Let us know what you are told or find out

Unemployed In Orlando wrote:

surfer wrote:Sorry for being unclear. I was just reminded that i don't have an eligibility letter for 2009. I started claiming in 2008. Its been over a year. My most recent letter said to claim wks on 7-28-09. This letter also said " Due to the change of the quarter, your claim is being reviewed for eligibility on regular employment compensation. If eligible, paymnets will be made on the new claim at the new weekly amount. If not, payments will continue on on the EUC program until available credits are exhausted or the program ends. " I exhausted available credits, I had no new employers since orig claim in '08... My account reads 0 and when i go online to apply for EB i'm told "SS number is ineligible".

Ok yup, now I got ya Sounds like the system tried to recertify you, I am dealing with the same issue but had a 2 week temp position which has entirely sent me into a clusterfuck. I think all you will need to do is get in touch with Melody or someone with access to the wage transcripts. Then they will be able to see you havent earned any wages since your original claim last year and pull the suspension for you. Every quarter the computer checks to see if you have worked and earned any money in the prior 2 quarters. Since you just claimed 7/28 it might take another few days for the EB app to accept your ssn, I wouldnt wait for that though, try calling and getting the hold lifted. Let us know what you are told or find out

yup, i just got reminded that the system tried to recertify all of us who worked for the same co. in orlando and down here, and lost jobs around the same time. we got determination letters & letters that made no sense, that melody said to ignore ~ just the ancient system at work. i'll try her again. that sucks about the temp job. i see what happened, just seems crazy that it can't be easily corrected.

The saga continues in my case but maybe this information can help someone else...

I found that my recertification for a new benefit year on 7/1 was in fact for a small amount of wages earned in December 2008 during the holiday. So my new year only pays $87 a week for 13 weeks (which I have been claiming since July). The good news is, after speaking with Josh (same dept as Melody, I posted his number under the contact thread), that after I exhaust the peanuts on this new claim in the next 7 or 8 weeks I should automatically go back under my original EB claim and be able to start claiming my $275 again until the remaining $3300 in credits is exhausted. So basically after a short amount of benefits for 3 months I will be back in the saddle again and be able to claim the remaining EB that was left after I was paid the 5 weeks retro up until 7/1.

If you were recertified and a new year was began for you, then dont worry you will be able to claim the rest of your EB thats remaining once they exhaust. You will not have to go through the EUC 2nd tier period again because that was a one time deal, just like the EB 3rd tier. You can only get EUC and EB once, fortunately like I said, I still have EB balance showing in their computer

........I really wish I could land a freaking job and not even have to worry about the future like this.......

surfer, did you find anything out today on your end?

Unemployed In Orlando wrote:surfer, did you find anything out today on your end?

UIO thanks for asking, as you're sorting out your own mess. sounds like you're back to EB after this unnecessary detour.. that said, i've been told to be very careful about PT work or 1099 work, that "the smallest thing can throw off a system on the brink." nothing new to report , but i tried melody and cunningham's office again. left detailed messages again. i'm accessing my account which is better than some friends, who were mailed conflicting papers, called and were advised to keep filing online until emergency benefits ended. the thing is that while they called and reached supervisors and even went through phone certification for past weeks, their accts have yet to be corrected. they don't show on line and they haven't been able to claim since June, and they're also calling. This is still regular benefits, but nearing the end, so something's messed up.

I'm not taking anything personally but wonder what's so f'ed up. as to landing a job, it has to happen. both myself and the friend i'm staying with have interviews tomorrow. we're open to a lot more now and i'm trying out a revised ["dumbed down"] resume. jobs are available in NH, MA and parts of NY in many fields, but i'm not entry level, no one would believe i'd take entry (i would), and i can't pass for age 30. i never thought money would go so quickly, that's what keeps me awake at nite. I'll check in with you later UIO. thanks again!

surfer wrote:

Unemployed In Orlando wrote:surfer, did you find anything out today on your end?

UIO thanks for asking, as you're sorting out your own mess. sounds like you're back to EB after this unnecessary detour.. that said, i've been told to be very careful about PT work or 1099 work, that "the smallest thing can throw off a system on the brink." nothing new to report , but i tried melody and cunningham's office again. left detailed messages again. i'm accessing my account which is better than some friends, who were mailed conflicting papers, called and were advised to keep filing online until emergency benefits ended. the thing is that while they called and reached supervisors and even went through phone certification for past weeks, their accts have yet to be corrected. they don't show on line and they haven't been able to claim since June, and they're also calling. This is still regular benefits, but nearing the end, so something's messed up.

I'm not taking anything personally but wonder what's so f'ed up. as to landing a job, it has to happen. both myself and the friend i'm staying with have interviews tomorrow. we're open to a lot more now and i'm trying out a revised ["dumbed down"] resume. jobs are available in NH, MA and parts of NY in many fields, but i'm not entry level, no one would believe i'd take entry (i would), and i can't pass for age 30. i never thought money would go so quickly, that's what keeps me awake at nite. I'll check in with you later UIO. thanks again!

I agree, anything PT, seasonal or temporary can really mess you up in the system. Sorry to hear you didnt get any further today, please check in and let us know once you hear something

called for like the eighth day and got Josh. good guy, i'm appreciative since melody was not calling back. all ok, i was able to apply for eb. YES!! josh said to give it at least 3 wks before hearing by mail, but from reading here... it could b before that. hope everybody's doing good here!

Hey nothing new to report. Got some email turn downs for jobs and have just about 4 weeks left of eb. I just wanted to wave at all my fellow eb peeps and say - hey we're all in this together and I feel your pains. I'm a single mom with two young kids and thankfully we were able to stay with relatives for a few months but with good prospects on the horizon and family tensions highly strained we moved into a rental home two weeks ago. The pressure is on! Not that it ever lifted but it is sort of nerve wracking!

sherbetarchitect wrote:Hey nothing new to report. Got some email turn downs for jobs and have just about 4 weeks left of eb. I just wanted to wave at all my fellow eb peeps and say - hey we're all in this together and I feel your pains. I'm a single mom with two young kids and thankfully we were able to stay with relatives for a few months but with good prospects on the horizon and family tensions highly strained we moved into a rental home two weeks ago. The pressure is on! Not that it ever lifted but it is sort of nerve wracking!

Hang in there. I know what you're going through. I'm a widowed Mom with young kids. I only have 3 weeks of EB left. I've been having garage sales & selling larger items on craigslist to make extra cash. It's been really helpful. If you do craigslists make sure you have a neighbor preferably a male to be there with you if someone comes over. I've also met one person at the post office parking lot & another at a local gas station. Meet strangers in a public area. Always be safe & aware of your surroundings. There are too many desparate people out there! Most of all keep smiling, your kids need your confidence

Hey, WHAT A MESS!!!! i claimed my weeks online today, and the work search form was changed again, this time for the worse, because you have to have all the info they ask for, i even called the 2042418 number and asked them that how in the world was i spposed to put information that is not given out on the places i apply for work, which is Career Builders, Monster,etc. most of the time they will NOT put information on company name, address and phone number, and sometimes not even reference number...you know what the lady told me? that if that info was not input, they would not accept the claim...so here i go, went crazy for almost two hours trying to find numbers and company names, it was almost impossible, so i did the best i could, this time they really messed everything. just to let you now guys, i normally do my claiming at 9 a.m, ....you know at what time i ended today? almost at 2:15. WHAT A MESS!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Worried. Claimed weeks this morning and put in my work search info. Now my account shows no check issued but my next date to claim benefits is on the 25th of August. Any suggestions?

sherbetarchitect wrote:Worried. Claimed weeks this morning and put in my work search info. Now my account shows no check issued but my next date to claim benefits is on the 25th of August. Any suggestions?

My account shows the EXACT same thing!

Maggi MIami wrote:Hey, WHAT A MESS!!!! i claimed my weeks online today, and the work search form was changed again, this time for the worse, because you have to have all the info they ask for, i even called the 2042418 number and asked them that how in the world was i spposed to put information that is not given out on the places i apply for work, which is Career Builders, Monster,etc. most of the time they will NOT put information on company name, address and phone number, and sometimes not even reference number...you know what the lady told me? that if that info was not input, they would not accept the claim...so here i go, went crazy for almost two hours trying to find numbers and company names, it was almost impossible, so i did the best i could, this time they really messed everything. just to let you now guys, i normally do my claiming at 9 a.m, ....you know at what time i ended today? almost at 2:15. WHAT A MESS!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Maggi - When I filled the forms in on-line, if you choose contact method by "internet" you don't have to fill in the contact name or street address & phone number. If you choose contact method by email, phone, person or other, you do have to fill in all the blanks. It is a mess! If there is no job number, I would just put in none given. Hope that helps & I hope we all get our $ very soon.

SaraJ wrote:
Maggi - When I filled the forms in on-line, if you choose contact method by "internet" you don't have to fill in the contact name or street address & phone number. If you choose contact method by email, phone, person or other, you do have to fill in all the blanks. It is a mess! If there is no job number, I would just put in none given. Hope that helps & I hope we all get our $ very soon.

Right, I really didn't see any change in the form itself this week. But I did notice that choosing "email" instead of "internet" required more info than was usually known about a job. Lots of jobs are via internet, but you can use an email, like I did for one job search this week. It was a craigslist job that had both the generic email reply plus a "real" email address, and that was all, except for the city location. So I chose "internet" not only because that was the actual job origin, but because it asked only for info I had, not the extra stuff.

In most of these searches, as long as you have the basics, like the date of application, type of work, and either a company name, web address, or job app url (which gets cut short anyway), I think you can just put "unknown" in some of the fields that are simply not available. Or put an email address in the "contact" field, if that's all that's available.