CalWORKs phone recertification nightmare - been on hold 45+ minutes after missed appointment

omg same thing happened to me last month!!! my worker never called for my scheduled appointment and then I got a notice saying I "failed to cooperate" with recertification. spent 3 days trying to get through to someone. eventually had to go to the office in person and wait 4 hours to get it fixed. bring proof of your appointment date/time if you go in!!

Unfortunately, this is becoming more common with the understaffing at county offices. Here's what you need to do: 1. Document everything - take screenshots of your appointment notice, call logs showing you tried to reach them, and write down how long you've been on hold 2. Keep calling, but also send an email to your county office explaining the situation (most counties have an email address for the CalWORKs department) 3. If your benefits do get discontinued, immediately file for a State Hearing - you have 90 days from the date of any negative action to request this 4. Ask for "conditional withdrawal" at the hearing if they agree to restore your benefits Remember, you have rights in this process. They cannot discontinue you without giving you a chance to complete recertification, especially if they failed to keep the appointment they scheduled.

Thiss iz why i always call them back like 5 mins b4 appointment time to confirrm. Seem like they always "forget" the phone appointments. Try calling right at 8am when they open tomoro, thats what i do n usually only wait 10-15 mins then

This happens all the time with CalWORKs phone appointments. The workers are overwhelmed with caseloads of 300+ families each. When you do eventually get through, make sure to request a "Good Cause" exemption for missing the appointment, since they were the ones who missed it, not you. The county is required to give you a minimum of 10 days to provide any verification before they can discontinue your benefits. If you receive a discontinuance notice, immediately file for a hearing AND contact your worker (or supervisor) to try resolving it without waiting for the hearing. For phone recertifications specifically, make sure you have all your verification documents ready to submit through BenefitsCal or email once you do connect with someone. They'll need income verification, any changes in household, school attendance for children, and verification of your Welfare to Work hours if applicable.

Have you tried using Claimyr? It's a service that holds your place in line and calls you back when a worker is available. Saved me HOURS of hold time last month when I had a similar problem with my recertification. I was skeptical at first but they have a video showing how it works: https://youtu.be/jzISHxCPLwE Their website is claimyr.com - definitely worth checking out since counties don't seem to be fixing their phone systems anytime soon. You still get connected to the same workers, just without the ridiculous hold times.

The CalWORKs system is COMPLETELY BROKEN!! I've been dealing with this garbage for years. They expect us to be available exactly when they say, answer on the first ring, have every piece of paperwork perfect, meet every WTW requirement... but they can just not show up to appointments, lose our documents, take months to process changes, and disconnect us after hours on hold. And WE suffer the consequences of THEIR failures! Then they wonder why so many of us have anxiety and depression. It's because the system TRAUMATIZES us constantly!!

UPDATE: I want to share some good news. I just spoke with a CalWORKs supervisor about a similar situation. They confirmed that with the new policies implemented in 2025, counties are required to make THREE attempts to contact you for recertification before they can take negative action. If they miss the appointment, they must document their attempt and reschedule within 3 business days. Make sure you keep calling and specifically request to speak with a supervisor about a missed recertification appointment. Tell them you need it documented in the case notes that THEY missed the appointment, not you. If your benefits do get discontinued, you have the right to submit for "restoration of aid" without having to completely reapply if it's within 30 days of discontinuance.

I'm so sorry you're dealing with this - it's incredibly frustrating when you're already stressed about keeping your benefits and then they make it worse by missing their own appointments. I've been through similar situations and here's what helped me: Keep detailed records of every call attempt, including dates, times, and how long you waited on hold. If you have a smartphone, take screenshots of your call log showing the duration. When you do get through, immediately ask them to note in your case file that THEY missed the scheduled appointment, not you. Also, if you haven't already, try calling different county offices if your area has multiple locations - sometimes one office answers faster than others. And don't let them rush you off the phone once you do connect - make sure they reschedule your appointment AND confirm they've documented their mistake in your case notes. You're doing everything right by being proactive. The system is broken, but you have rights and protections. Keep fighting for what you need for your family!

I'm going through something similar right now with my recertification! My worker was supposed to call me last Friday and never did. I've been calling every day since then and can barely get through. When I finally did connect yesterday, they told me my worker was "out sick" but couldn't tell me when she'd be back or who was covering her cases. The stress is unreal - I have two kids and work part-time, so losing CalWORKs would be devastating. What really gets me is how they expect us to drop everything when they call, but then they can just not show up with zero consequences. I've started documenting everything too after reading posts here. Taking photos of my phone showing missed calls, writing down who I talk to and when. One thing that's helped me is calling right when they open at 8am - the wait times are usually shorter then. Also, if anyone knows about this, can you request a specific date/time for your makeup appointment or do they just assign whatever they want? I need to make sure I can arrange childcare if they reschedule during my work hours.