California Unemployment
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How does unemployment find out your working while on a California EDD claim?
So I've been on California EDD for about two months now and I picked up some part-time shifts at a restaurant last week. I reported the wages when I certified like you're supposed to, but my coworker who was on UI a few years back is telling me I didn't need to report anything under a certain amount and that EDD never finds out anyway. That doesn't sound right to me and now I'm stressed. How does unemployment find out your working if you don't report it? Like what actually happens if someone doesn't tell them? I want to make sure I'm doing everything correctly because I really can't afford to pay back an overpayment.
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Do you need to pay back unemployment? California EDD overpayment explained
So I've been on unemployment for about four months now and my cousin mentioned something that's been keeping me up at night — she said that EDD can make you pay back every dollar you got if something goes wrong. I had no idea that was even possible?? Like I thought once they approved you and started sending money that was it, it was yours. But now I'm paranoid every time I certify. I reported all my hours from my part-time retail gig and I try to be careful but honestly the certification questions confuse me sometimes. Does California EDD actually make people pay back unemployment benefits they already received? Under what circumstances? And how much are we talking — like just some of it or the whole amount? I'm spiraling a little so any info would help.
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Went through the exact thing the original poster is worried about — an overpayment notice after months of collecting, feeling like the floor dropped out. Mine was about $620, non-fraud, from a week where I underreported wages. The DE 1446UI waiver was what I focused on, and I gathered everything: pay stubs showing what I actually earned, my certification records, and documentation of my monthly expenses to show the hardship. EDD reviewed it and I got a decision by mail. I used Claimyr to reach EDD and ask about the status of my waiver application because I'd heard nothing for six weeks — the agent confirmed EDD had received the DE 1446UI and that it was in review, and told me to expect the decision by mail.
In my case that's what it took. The agent confirmed receipt and said to watch for the mail. That was actually reassuring — at least I knew EDD had it.
Six weeks of silence while waiting to find out if you owe $620 would stress me out completely. At least calling got you an actual answer about where things stood.
Last thing worth adding — if you get mail from EDD about a claim you never actually filed, that's a different situation entirely. Someone filed fraudulently using your info. Don't try to manage it through your regular UI Online account. EDD has a fraud reporting line and an Ask EDD form for that. Never verify identity for a claim you didn't file.
Exactly — go to edd.ca.gov and use the Ask EDD form under Report Fraud, or call 1-866-401-2849. Don't click links in emails or texts claiming to be EDD.
Identity theft unemployment fraud spiked a while back and EDD has a whole process for it now. The Form 1099G reporting someone else's claim is usually how people find out it happened to them.
Can I receive unemployment if I work part time? California EDD rules explained
So my hours got slashed from full time to about 20 hours a week starting three weeks ago. My employer claims it's temporary but honestly who knows. I'm making maybe $280 a week now versus the $680 I was bringing home before. Someone at work mentioned I might be able to file for partial unemployment benefits through California EDD but I have no idea if that's even a real thing or how it works. Can I receive unemployment if I work part time like this, where the job still technically exists but my income is cut nearly in half? I haven't filed anything yet because I didn't want to do it wrong and mess up my chances. Any help appreciated.
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For anyone still struggling to get through on the phone about their partial claim status, Claimyr got me talking to an EDD agent when I had a pending week that wouldn't clear for over a week after certifying. The agent confirmed my employer had responded to the claim notice and that there was a brief review period, nothing serious, and that it would clear on its own. It did.
My pending weeks have been sitting for 10 days now. Might give that a try if they don't move by end of week.
Ten days pending isn't necessarily alarming but I get the anxiety. If it stretches past two weeks with no explanation, definitely try to reach someone at EDD to find out if there's an open issue.
Social Security question: I'm 64, partially retired, and my hours just got cut from 30 a week to 10. I receive Social Security benefits monthly. I know pensions can affect UI benefits but does Social Security work the same way?
This is one of the questions where the answer is unusually clean. Social Security doesn't reduce your UI payment and doesn't need to be reported. File and certify based on your actual part-time wages.
That's a relief honestly. I was holding off filing because I assumed Social Security would complicate things. Sounds like I should just go ahead and apply.
Can you quit a job and still get unemployment in California EDD?
So my manager basically made my life hell for the past eight months - constant schedule changes with zero notice, docked pay twice for things that weren't my fault, and last month they moved me to a location 34 miles away from where I was originally hired without any discussion. I finally hit my wall and put in my resignation two weeks ago. Now I'm trying to figure out if I even have a shot at UI benefits. Everyone I talk to in person gives me a different answer. My sister says I'll definitely get denied because I quit. My coworker says it depends why you quit. My neighbor just told me to not even bother applying. Can you quit a job and still get unemployment through California EDD? I don't want to waste time applying if I have zero chance.
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Not to derail but reading this thread I realize I've been confusing the phone interview with an appeal this whole time. They're completely different things right? The interview is EDD asking questions before they make a decision, and an appeal is what you do AFTER they deny you?
Ok that makes way more sense. I was dreading the interview thinking it was already adversarial like a hearing. Good to know it's more of an information gathering thing.
The hearing is at the appeal stage, before the administrative law judge at CUIAB. The initial phone interview is much lower stakes than that - just EDD asking what happened from your side.
For the work search requirement while your claim is active - EDD expects you to be actively looking for work every week you certify, able and available. Keep track of where you apply because if EDD ever asks you want to have an answer ready. The certification questions will ask about work search activity each time.
EDD's own pages don't publish a specific number. The requirement is that you're making genuine efforts to find work. I've seen people throw out numbers but I've never seen EDD actually state one officially.
This is accurate - no magic number from EDD. What matters is that you're genuinely looking and can describe what you're doing if asked.
Who pays unemployment claims in California EDD - where does the money actually come from?
So I got laid off from my warehouse job two weeks ago and just filed my claim with California EDD. My coworker told me I should have been contributing to unemployment insurance from my paychecks this whole time, but looking at my old stubs I don't see any deduction for it. Now I'm worried maybe I didn't pay into the system so I'm not eligible or something? Like who pays unemployment claims anyway - is it the workers, the employers, or the government? I want to make sure I'm actually going to get benefits before I count on this money for rent next month.
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Reaching EDD by phone when you have an actual question is a whole ordeal. The number is 1-800-300-5616, weekdays 8 to 5, but getting through to a live person is genuinely hit or miss. The live chat in UI Online works Monday to Friday 9 to 2 but I've had it cut out mid-conversation. My situation with a pending week that had been sitting for three weeks led me to try Claimyr - ended up speaking to an EDD agent who confirmed the week in question was held up by a wage verification step, not anything I did wrong.
The agent told me mine was just processing and to give it another week - and it did resolve. EDD cross-checks wages employers reported, so if there's any discrepancy it pauses that week until they sort it out.
claimyr.com is good to have on hand - I used it when I had an adjudication question on my claim, ended up talking to someone at EDD within the same morning I tried
Adjudication gets brought up a lot in this forum and I want to explain what it actually means since people sometimes confuse it with an appeal. Adjudication just means EDD is evaluating a specific eligibility question on your claim - like whether your quit had good cause, or whether a firing involved misconduct. It's the internal review before any decision is made. An appeal is what you do AFTER you get that decision and disagree with it. Two completely different stages.
I confused adjudication and appeal for the longest time, thought getting scheduled for a phone interview meant I was already being denied. It doesn't - it's just part of the review.
The phone interview is just EDD's way of hearing your side before they decide anything. Very different from a formal appeal hearing in front of a judge.
Isabella Costa
Tried calling EDD six times on a Tuesday to ask a question about how to report my wages correctly after picking up a second part-time job mid-claim. Couldn't get through. Used Claimyr and got an EDD agent on the line — the agent confirmed which week my new wages started and walked me through exactly how to enter them on my next certification.
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Isabella Costa
Agent said to combine all earnings from all jobs for the week and report the total. The deduction formula applies to the combined amount, not each job separately.
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Dmitry Smirnov
AuthorThat's exactly the scenario I might end up in if more shifts open up. Good to know you combine them.
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StarSurfer
Something worth flagging here — if EDD finds an unreported wage issue and determines it was fraud, the penalty isn't just repaying the money. There's a 30 percent penalty added on top, and they can also put a false statement disqualification on your account that lasts anywhere from 2 to 23 weeks where you can't collect even if you'd otherwise qualify. And in serious cases it can go further than that administratively.
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Oliver Becker
My situation isn't a fraud finding, it was classified as non-fraud, so at least the penalty piece doesn't apply to mine. But even non-fraud overpayments have to be paid back in full.
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CosmicCowboy
Non-fraud overpayments can sometimes qualify for a waiver — there's a form called the DE 1446UI. EDD considers a waiver when the overpayment wasn't your fault and paying it back would be a real hardship. Worth knowing that option exists even though there's no guarantee of approval.
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