Wow, this entire thread has been absolutely eye-opening! As someone who's been working for a California school district for 3 years, I'm honestly shocked that I never knew about the SDI exemption or differential pay benefits. Edward, I'm so relieved you were able to get the differential pay situation sorted out - it's really disturbing that HR didn't mention this critical benefit when you first called in a panic about having no income. Reading through everyone's experiences has made me realize how many "hidden" benefits and protections exist that aren't clearly communicated during hiring or orientation. I'm definitely going to schedule a comprehensive benefits review with my HR department and bring a detailed list of questions based on everything I've learned here - differential pay, catastrophic leave banks, voluntary disability insurance, EAP programs, and any emergency assistance funds. It's honestly appalling that so many of us are discovering these crucial benefits only during crisis situations or through online forums like this. This information should be mandatory in new employee orientation, not something we have to piece together ourselves. The fact that multiple experienced public employees in this thread are learning about benefits they never knew existed really highlights a systemic communication problem. Thank you to everyone who shared their knowledge and experiences here - this discussion could literally prevent other public employees from facing the same financial panic Edward went through. This thread should honestly be required reading for anyone considering or starting a career in California public education!

This thread has been such an incredible learning experience! As someone who just started working for a California school district as a new teacher, I had absolutely no clue about the SDI exemption or any of these alternative benefits that have been discussed. Edward, I'm so thankful you shared your story and kept pushing until you found the differential pay solution - it's really troubling that HR didn't volunteer this crucial information when you first called in obvious distress about your financial situation. What's been most eye-opening for me is seeing how many experienced public employees are discovering benefits they never knew existed, even after years of service. It really shows there's a major gap in how benefit information is communicated to us. I'm definitely going to request a comprehensive meeting with my HR department and bring a detailed list based on everything discussed here - differential pay policies, catastrophic leave donation programs, voluntary disability insurance options, EAP services, and any emergency assistance funds. As a new educator, I'm also going to reach out to my union representative to make sure I understand all available protections and benefits. It seems like they often have institutional knowledge that goes beyond what's in the standard HR materials. This conversation has made me realize how much more proactive I need to be about understanding my coverage rather than just assuming standard protections exist. Thank you to everyone who shared their experiences and knowledge - this thread could literally save new public employees from the kind of financial panic Edward faced. This should honestly be required reading for anyone entering California public education!

Jumping in as someone who just successfully navigated this exact situation! Had my ACL reconstruction last month and ran into the same paper vs electronic confusion. What saved me was calling my doctor's office BEFORE my surgery to ask about their disability form process - turns out they do both electronic AND paper, but their staff defaults to paper unless you specifically request electronic submission. Here's what I learned: some medical offices are registered for SDI Online but their front desk staff isn't trained on it, so they automatically assume "paper only." When I asked to speak with their office manager about electronic submission options, she was able to submit my form directly through their SDI Online portal the same day I brought it in. Got confirmation from EDD within 48 hours! The key question to ask is: "Are you registered for EDD's SDI Online system, and if so, can you submit my disability certification electronically?" Don't just ask if they "do electronic forms" - be specific about the SDI Online system. Also want to echo what others said about Claimyr - totally worth it to actually reach a human at EDD. The rep I spoke with mentioned that electronic submissions from registered medical providers get processed faster than faxed or mailed forms, so it's definitely worth pushing for if your doctor's office has the capability. Hope this helps others avoid the paperwork runaround! This community is such a lifesaver for navigating these confusing government systems.

This whole thread has been absolutely invaluable! I'm facing hip replacement surgery in a few weeks and honestly had no clue about any of these paper vs electronic complications. Reading everyone's experiences has completely changed how I'm going to approach this. The most helpful takeaways for me are: 1) Call the doctor's office NOW to ask specifically about SDI Online registration (using @Yuki Sato's exact wording), 2) Be prepared with the backup paper/fax plan if needed, 3) Use Claimyr to actually reach EDD, and 4) Keep detailed tracking of everything. What really strikes me is how much this seems to come down to asking the right questions with the right terminology. So many of the delays and confusion could be avoided if we just knew to ask "Are you registered for EDD's SDI Online system?" instead of the vague "do you handle disability forms electronically?" This community knowledge is honestly better than anything I've found on official websites. Thank you @Sofía Rodríguez for starting this discussion and everyone else for sharing your real-world experiences. I feel so much more prepared now! One question for the group - for those who used Claimyr, about how much did it cost to get through to EDD? Trying to budget for all the potential expenses during my recovery period.

I've been dealing with EDD callbacks for months now, and here's what I've learned: the wait times are incredibly inconsistent. Sometimes they call back the same day, sometimes it takes over a week. I've found that if you requested a callback on a Wednesday morning like you did, Sofia, you might hear back by Friday at the latest - but honestly, it could be sooner or later. The key thing is to keep your phone on you at ALL times and answer every unknown number. I missed one callback and had to wait another two weeks to get through again. Also, make sure your voicemail isn't full and has a clear greeting with your name. They won't leave detailed messages but they'll sometimes leave a brief callback number. Stay strong - the waiting game is brutal but you'll get through eventually!

I'm in a similar boat right now - requested my callback yesterday evening and still nothing. Reading through everyone's experiences here, it sounds like the wait times are really all over the map. Some people get lucky with same-day callbacks, others are waiting weeks or even months (Miguel, I can't believe you've been at this since March!). I think the advice about keeping your phone close and answering unknown numbers is spot on. I've already missed one potential spam call today and now I'm second-guessing myself 😅 Sofia, since you requested yours Wednesday morning, hopefully you'll hear something by end of week. The uncertainty is definitely the hardest part - not knowing if you should keep waiting or try a different approach. Thanks to everyone sharing their experiences and tips, it's really helpful to know we're not going through this alone!

Hi everyone! I'm new to this community but just went through this exact same situation a few weeks ago. I was on SDI for about 8 weeks last year after a work injury and had the same tax confusion that Isabel is dealing with. What really helped me figure it out was looking at my final EDD payment statement - it actually has a small note that mentions the tax implications. Since I paid into SDI through my regular payroll deductions (which you can verify by checking your paystubs for "CA SDI" deductions), my benefits were NOT taxable on my federal return. For the tax software question, I ended up calling the support line for my tax prep software and asked specifically about "California State Disability Insurance benefits paid for through employee payroll deductions." They confirmed I should answer "no" to the taxable disability income question since CA SDI benefits aren't taxable when you pay the premiums yourself. I filed my return about 3 weeks ago with no issues. The key things that confirmed it wasn't taxable for me: 1) I had CA SDI deductions on all my paystubs, 2) I never received a 1099-G from EDD, and 3) the EDD payment statement had that note about tax implications. Hope this helps! It's definitely stressful when you're not sure, but it sounds like you're in the same boat as most of us here with standard CA SDI coverage.

I'm new here but just went through this same situation! I was on SDI for about 5 months last year after a car accident and was completely confused about the tax implications. After reading through all these responses, I wanted to add one more confirmation point that helped me. I ended up speaking with an IRS representative directly (took forever to get through, but worth it) and they confirmed that California SDI benefits are NOT taxable on federal returns when you pay the premiums through payroll deductions. The agent explained that since you're paying into SDI with after-tax dollars (through your regular paycheck deductions), the benefits you receive are not considered taxable income. For anyone still unsure, here's what I used to verify my situation: 1) Check old paystubs for "CA SDI" deductions, 2) Confirm you didn't receive a 1099-G from EDD, 3) Look for any tax notes on your EDD payment statements, and 4) Remember that most CA employees pay into SDI themselves unless they have special employer-provided coverage. Isabel, it sounds like you're definitely in the standard situation where your benefits aren't federally taxable. For your tax software, answer "no" to taxable disability income questions since CA SDI doesn't fall into that category when you pay the premiums yourself. Hope this helps add to the consensus here!

ugh im so tired of EDD's broken website. why cant they just hire some decent programers and fix this mess???

I'm dealing with the exact same address issue! It's so frustrating. I found that sometimes if you log out completely, clear your browser data, and then log back in during off-peak hours (like 6-7 AM), the fields become editable again. Also, for the phone number issue, I had to mail in a form to get it corrected - it's form DE 4581. You can download it from the EDD website. Takes forever but it's the only way they'll accept phone number changes if the online system won't let you do it. Hang in there! 💪