Ok, well, you DON’T dress up to go to the unemployment office. And they are nicer than the DMV people. You also find out that you apparently need to call to file a claim instead of going there. Who knew? You also find out that the more you fight and the louder you are the more likely it is you will get through the system.
When I called the girl just said “Your former employer didn’t pay into unemployment insurance so you aren’t eligible” (my old employer is a non-profit so they aren’t required to pay into unemployment) to which I retorted “well, my HR lady said I could still apply and you guys would just bill the company” and all of a sudden she was all about taking my claim. So let that be a lesson to all of you, keep pushing.
Now I start my journy through the red tape. I have to call them between 6pm and 7pm on August 10. I’m not sure why, or what I need to talk to them about, but they said they’d send me stuff in the mail. I apparently need to take my resume to a Michigan Works center to get it stamped. Um, I’m not sure why, but I’ll do it if it means they’ll pay me.
In other news, there was a cute little 5 year old Asian boy who stood behind me while I was waiting for my number to be called. He got VERY close. I think he was alternating between watching me play Phoenix Wright: Trials and Tribulations and looking at the d20 Apocalypse book my friend was reading. The child is well on his way to nerdom.
God Speed, and good luck.