Can't reach California Unemployment? Claimyr connects you to a live EDD agent in minutes.
Claimyr is a pay-as-you-go service. We do not charge a recurring subscription.
Using Claimyr will:
- Connect you to a human agent at the EDD
- Skip the long phone menu
- Call the correct department
- Redial until on hold
- Forward a call to your phone with reduced hold time
- Give you free callbacks if the EDD drops your call
If I could give 10 stars I would
If I could give 10 stars I would If I could give 10 stars I would Such an amazing service so needed during the times when EDD almost never picks up Claimyr gets me on the phone with EDD every time without fail faster. A much needed service without Claimyr I would have never received the payment I needed to support me during my postpartum recovery. Thank you so much Claimyr!
Really made a difference
Really made a difference, save me time and energy from going to a local office for making the call.
Worth not wasting your time calling for hours.
Was a bit nervous or untrusting at first, but my calls went thru. First time the wait was a bit long but their customer chat line on their page was helpful and put me at ease that I would receive my call. Today my call dropped because of EDD and Claimyr heard my concern on the same chat and another call was made within the hour.
An incredibly helpful service
An incredibly helpful service! Got me connected to a CA EDD agent without major hassle (outside of EDD's agents dropping calls – which Claimyr has free protection for). If you need to file a new claim and can't do it online, pay the $ to Claimyr to get the process started. Absolutely worth it!
Consistent,frustration free, quality Service.
Used this service a couple times now. Before I'd call 200 times in less than a weak frustrated as can be. But using claimyr with a couple hours of waiting i was on the line with an representative or on hold. Dropped a couple times but each reconnected not long after and was mission accomplished, thanks to Claimyr.
IT WORKS!! Not a scam!
I tried for weeks to get thru to EDD PFL program with no luck. I gave this a try thinking it may be a scam. OMG! It worked and They got thru within an hour and my claim is going to finally get paid!! I upgraded to the $60 call. Best $60 spent!
Ask the community...
- DO post questions about your issues.
- DO answer questions and support each other.
- DO post tips & tricks to help folks.
- DO NOT post call problems here - there is a support tab at the top for that :)
Join the conversation
Join the conversation
UPDATE: My payment finally switched from pending to paid this morning! The EDD website now says the payment was issued today (Monday) so hopefully it will be in my account tomorrow morning. Thanks everyone for your help!
Great news! Yes, if it shows paid today then it should hit your account tomorrow. Glad it worked out!
That's awesome news! I'm glad your payment finally processed. I'm actually in a similar situation - certified yesterday around 2 PM and mine is still showing pending this morning. Your timeline gives me hope that it should switch to paid by tomorrow. Did you notice any specific time when it changed from pending to paid, or did you just happen to check at the right moment?
I'm in the exact same boat! Certified Sunday afternoon and still showing pending as of this morning. Really hoping it switches to paid by tomorrow like yours did. The waiting is the worst part, especially when you have bills due. Thanks for sharing your timeline - it's reassuring to know others have had similar delays that resolved themselves.
I checked around 9 AM this morning and that's when I noticed it had switched from pending to paid! I think it probably updated sometime overnight. For what it's worth, I've noticed that when I certify later in the day on Sunday (like after noon), it sometimes takes until Tuesday morning to show as paid instead of Monday. But once it switches to paid, the deposit timing is pretty consistent - usually the next business day.
Join the conversation
To all those having trouble reaching a human at California Unemployment. I just ran across this video that gave me a shortcut to reach a human. Hope it helps! https://youtu.be/Ize0EkN4HDI
I'm having a similar issue where I can't my UI Online account. It's been really frustrating trying to get through to by phone. Has anyone tried the ID.me verification process? I heard that might be required now for account access, but I'm not sure if that's related to this specific error message. Would appreciate any guidance from others who've dealt with this!
Yes, the ID.me verification is definitely required now for most accounts! I had to go through that process when I got locked out earlier this year. You'll need to create an ID.me account and verify your identity with documents like your driver's license and a selfie. Once that's approved (can take a few days), you should be able to link it back to your account. The whole process was a bit tedious but it did resolve my issue. If you haven't received any mail from about identity verification like Jordan mentioned, I'd definitely try the ID.me route first before paying for services.
Join the conversation
Just wanted to follow up - were you able to recover your account using any of the methods suggested? If you're still having trouble, I recommend trying the EDD online assistance form at https://askedd.edd.ca.gov/ and selecting the option for account technical issues. Sometimes they respond faster to written requests than phone calls. Also, be aware that if you're reapplying after a long break, you'll need to go through ID verification again with ID.me even after you recover your account access.
Update: I finally got in! I found my 2020 tax records and figured out what my weekly payment was. Had to subtract the tax withholding like someone mentioned. Now working on the ID.me verification which is a whole other headache... but at least I'm making progress. Thanks everyone for the help!
That's awesome that you got it figured out! The tax withholding detail really does trip people up. ID.me can be frustrating but at least you're past the hardest part. Good luck with your new claim!
Congrats on getting back in! For anyone else reading this thread who might be stuck on the ID.me verification step - here's a tip that helped me: make sure you're using the EXACT same name format that's on your driver's license or state ID. Even small differences like using "Mike" instead of "Michael" or having a middle initial vs full middle name can cause the verification to fail. Also, if you're doing the video call verification, have good lighting and hold your ID steady - the representatives are usually pretty patient if the system is being finicky with reading your documents.
Join the conversation
As someone who works in HR and deals with unemployment claims regularly, I wanted to add some clarity to this discussion. The experiences shared here are really valuable, and it's great to see so many retired teachers getting the benefits they deserve! The key principle everyone is touching on is correct - California's pension offset only applies when the employer paying your pension also contributed wages during your base period (typically the first 4 of the last 5 completed calendar quarters before you filed). Since most of you worked at your post-retirement jobs for 12+ months, your teaching employment likely falls outside this base period. However, I'd recommend everyone keep detailed records of their pension amounts and employment dates just in case EDD requests additional documentation during their review process. Also, when you certify for benefits, make sure you're reporting your gross pension amount (before any deductions) in the "other income" section to avoid any overpayment issues down the road. The fact that so many people in this thread had positive outcomes suggests that EDD is correctly applying the base period rules for retired teachers. Definitely apply if you're eligible - you paid into the system and deserve those benefits!
This is such helpful professional insight! As someone new to this community and facing this exact situation (retired teacher, CalSTRS pension, worked at a tech company for 15 months before layoffs), I really appreciate having an HR perspective on how the base period calculations actually work. Your point about keeping detailed records is really smart - I'm going to make sure I have all my employment dates and pension documentation organized before I apply. It's reassuring to see that EDD seems to be applying these rules correctly based on everyone's positive experiences here. The clarification about reporting gross pension amounts during certification is also really valuable - I wouldn't have thought about that detail. Thanks for adding this professional context to help all of us navigate this process!
I'm a retired teacher who just stumbled across this thread while researching my own situation - this is incredibly helpful! I've been receiving my CalSTRS pension for about 18 months and just got laid off from a part-time administrative job I'd been working for 14 months. I was really hesitant to apply for unemployment because I assumed my pension would either disqualify me or severely reduce my benefits. Reading all these success stories from other retired teachers in nearly identical situations has given me the confidence to move forward with my application. It sounds like the key factor is that my teaching job won't be included in the base period since I've been working the admin job for over a year. I'm going to apply online this week and make sure to be completely transparent about my CalSTRS pension and employment timeline. If I run into any issues getting through to EDD, I'll definitely look into that Claimyr service that was mentioned. Thanks to everyone for sharing their real experiences - it's so much more valuable than trying to navigate the confusing official resources alone!
Welcome to the community! Your situation sounds very similar to everyone else here - it's amazing how many retired teachers are dealing with this exact scenario. Based on all the positive experiences shared in this thread, you should definitely feel confident about applying. The 14-month timeline at your admin job puts you in a really good position since your teaching employment won't be in your base period. I'm also new here and was feeling overwhelmed by all the conflicting information online, but seeing these real success stories from @Nia Davis, @Peyton Clarke, and others has been so reassuring. The transparency approach seems to be key - just be upfront about everything and let EDD make the determination. Good luck with your application!
Zoe Papadopoulos
Pro tip for everyone struggling with the EDD website - if you're on mobile, try switching to desktop view or using a computer instead. The mobile version of UI Online is even more confusing and sometimes doesn't display all the information correctly. I couldn't find my claim balance on my phone for the longest time, but it showed up fine when I logged in from my laptop. The desktop version is still terrible, but at least it's consistently terrible lol.
0 coins
Zoe Papanikolaou
•This is such a good point! I've been trying to manage everything from my phone and it's been a nightmare. The mobile site is missing so many features and the layout is completely different. I'll definitely try logging in from a computer next time. Thanks for the tip - "consistently terrible" made me laugh because that's so accurate! 😂
0 coins
Chad Winthrope
Another thing to keep in mind - if you're getting close to exhausting your regular UI benefits, you might want to look into whether you qualify for extended benefits or other programs. I learned this the hard way when my claim balance hit zero and I had no idea there were other options available. The EDD website doesn't really make it clear what happens next, so it's worth researching early rather than waiting until you're down to your last few weeks of benefits.
0 coins
Toot-n-Mighty
•This is really helpful advice! I'm getting worried because I can see my balance is getting low and I had no idea there might be other programs available. Do you know where I can find information about these extended benefits? Is it something that automatically kicks in or do I need to apply separately? I really don't want to be caught off guard when my regular benefits run out.
0 coins