idk about yall but im so tired of jumping through hoops just to get whats owed to us. the whole system needs an overhaul fr 😫

From my experience, county babysitting work definitely needs to be reported to EDD. Since it's through the county, there's likely a paper trail anyway, so it's better to be upfront about it. When I had similar situation with part-time work, I found that being transparent from the start saved me a lot of headaches later. The EDD will calculate your partial benefits based on your total earnings, so you might still qualify for some unemployment while doing the babysitting work. Just make sure to report it consistently every time you certify!

To summarize what everyone is saying: 1. Severance typically counts as wages in California for UI purposes 2. How your severance was paid matters (lump sum vs. ongoing payments) 3. You likely did the correct thing by waiting until severance ended to file One additional point: your benefit year is still 12 months from when you filed in June, so you're not losing any potential weeks of benefits - you're just receiving them over a different timeframe. The maximum number of weeks you can collect in California is still 26 weeks within your benefit year. Since you're already receiving payments, focusing on maximizing your current benefits and job search is likely the best use of your time rather than trying to backdate the claim.

As someone who just went through a similar situation a few months ago, I can confirm you absolutely did the right thing! I was laid off in February with 12 weeks of severance pay and made the mistake of filing immediately thinking I could get benefits on top of severance. Big mistake - I had to report my severance income every two weeks during certification and received $0 in UI benefits until my severance ended. It was basically just extra paperwork for no benefit. When my severance finally ended in May, THEN I started receiving my weekly UI payments. Your approach of waiting until June was much smarter. You saved yourself months of pointless certifications and you're getting the same total amount of benefits anyway. Don't second-guess yourself - the system is designed exactly for situations like yours where people receive ongoing severance payments. The only time filing immediately makes sense is if you get a true lump sum payment all at once, but even then you'd only be eligible after that single week where you received it.

I went through a very similar situation last year and want to share some additional tips that helped me win my appeal. First, document EVERYTHING - I created a timeline with dates, times, and exact quotes from conversations. Second, if you have any coworkers who witnessed positive feedback about your performance or heard the termination meeting, ask them to write brief statements for you (they don't have to attend the hearing). Third, look up your company's employee handbook - if they didn't follow their own progressive discipline policy before terminating you, that's huge evidence in your favor. The fact that they said you were "showing great improvement" just two weeks before letting you go is actually really strong evidence that this wasn't misconduct. Stay strong and don't let them intimidate you - the appeal process exists exactly for situations like this where employers try to avoid paying into the unemployment system by making false claims!

I'm dealing with something very similar right now! My employer told me they were "restructuring my position" but then reported to EDD that I was terminated for poor attendance (I had maybe 2 sick days in 8 months). The inconsistency between what they tell you vs what they tell EDD is SO common. From what I've learned researching my own case, California has a really high bar for proving misconduct - it has to be willful or deliberate violation of company policy, not just performance issues. The fact that your supervisor literally used the words "letting you go" and gave you positive feedback so recently makes this sound like a layoff/performance termination, not misconduct. Definitely appeal and emphasize that disconnect between their positive feedback and sudden termination. Also document everything NOW while it's fresh - exact quotes, dates, who was present. I'm rooting for you! These employers shouldn't be able to deny people benefits by changing their story after the fact.

have u checked ur inbox on UI Online? sometimes they send messages asking for more info before they'll process payment. also check ur spam folder for emails from edd. my wife almost missed an important notice that way

Just following up - were you able to reach EDD and get this resolved? I'm curious if they determined the part-time offer was unsuitable work. This information could help others in similar situations.

I switched from Money Network to direct deposit about 6 weeks ago and it's been so much better! I was in your exact situation - transferring from the card to my local credit union and waiting 3+ days every time. Now I certify Sunday and get my payment by Tuesday morning consistently. The setup was pretty easy through UI Online but here's what I learned: definitely call your credit union first to ask about their ACH deposit policy and to give them a heads up that you'll be receiving government deposits. My credit union doesn't put holds on them but they appreciated the advance notice. Also, have a voided check or your online banking open when you enter the account info - don't try to do it from memory! The transition took about 2 weeks for me. My first payment after requesting the switch still went to Money Network, then the second one came via direct deposit. Just keep your card active until you see that first direct deposit hit. One unexpected benefit: when I had a payment issue a few weeks ago, the EDD rep could see the direct deposit status immediately and helped resolve it quickly. With Money Network they always made me call the card company too. Definitely worth making the switch for the speed and simplicity!

I made the switch from Money Network to direct deposit about 2 months ago and it's been fantastic! I was doing exactly what you're doing - transferring from the card to my bank and waiting 2-3 days. Now I certify Sunday morning and my money is in my account by Monday night or Tuesday morning at the latest. The setup process through UI Online is pretty straightforward, but definitely take everyone's advice about being super careful with your account info. I had my online banking open on my phone while I filled out the form on my computer so I could double-check every single digit. Also called my bank beforehand to confirm the routing number and let them know to expect EDD deposits. One thing that helped me during the transition: I set a calendar reminder to check both my Money Network card AND my bank account for the first few payments after making the switch. That way I knew exactly when the changeover happened and didn't miss anything. The whole transition took about 2 weeks for me. The consistency has been amazing for bill planning! Knowing I'll have my money by Tuesday every cycle has made budgeting so much easier. Definitely recommend making the switch - you won't regret it!