After your hearing, the judge won't make a decision right away. You'll receive the decision by mail, usually within 1-2 weeks. If you lose, you have 20 days to appeal to the California Unemployment Insurance Appeals Board (CUIAB). One more tip: if you have any witnesses who can testify about your work performance or the circumstances of your separation, you can have them participate. Just notify the judge in advance. And remember that even though this feels personal (and it might be), the EDD appeal process only cares about the employment relationship and whether you're eligible for benefits under the law. Focus on demonstrating that you did not voluntarily quit, were not fired for misconduct, and remained available for work.

Yes, definitely bring screenshots of those texts from coworkers! Any evidence showing that the client termination was unexpected or unusual strengthens your case that this wasn't performance-related. Make sure the screenshots clearly show the date/time stamps and save them as PDFs if possible so they look more professional. Also, a few practical tips for the actual hearing day: test your phone connection beforehand if it's by phone, have water nearby (your mouth gets dry when you're nervous), and write down key points on paper in case you get flustered. The judge will ask both sides to state their case, then might ask follow-up questions. One thing that helped me was remembering that the burden of proof is actually on your employer to show you were terminated for misconduct or that you quit voluntarily. Since they're challenging your benefits, they need to prove their case - you just need to respond to their claims and show you were a good employee who lost their job through no fault of your own. You've got this! Most people who prepare like you're doing win their appeals.

I've been dealing with EDD phone issues for months and finally found a strategy that works consistently. Here's what I do: 1. Set multiple alarms for 8:00, 8:12, and 8:30am 2. Use the redial function on my phone instead of hanging up and redialing manually - this saves about 10-15 seconds each attempt 3. Keep a tally sheet to track attempts (helps me stay motivated and see progress) 4. For disability conversion claims specifically, I've had the best luck calling on Wednesdays around 8:45am The key is persistence but also being strategic about timing. I usually get through within 45-60 attempts when I follow this routine. It's exhausting but way better than the random approach I was using before. Also, if you're dealing with rent deadlines like Ethan, consider reaching out to your landlord to explain the EDD situation - many are understanding about government benefit delays right now since it's such a common issue.

I'm going through the exact same nightmare right now! Been trying to reach EDD for 2 weeks about my pending claim and getting nowhere. After reading all these suggestions, I'm planning to try a combination approach: 1. Going to use Fatima's strategy with the multiple alarms and redial function - the tally sheet idea is brilliant for staying motivated 2. Will try Andre's 2-1-2 button sequence since my issue is also disability-related 3. If phone calls fail by Friday, I'm driving to the nearest EDD office in person like Jamal suggested The Claimyr service sounds promising too based on Mei's success story, though I'm still a bit hesitant about third-party services. Has anyone else tried it recently? One thing I wanted to add - for those dealing with financial pressure while waiting, some local food banks and emergency assistance programs specifically help people stuck in EDD limbo. I found this out through my county's 211 helpline. It's not a solution to the main problem but can help bridge the gap while fighting to get through to EDD. This thread has been more helpful than hours of googling. Thank you everyone for sharing your real experiences!

One more important thing: make sure Hawaii has your correct mailing address so you'll receive your 1099-G form for tax filing. They'll send it in January, and you'll need it to properly report your unemployment income. If you don't receive it, you can usually request it online through Hawaii's unemployment portal.

I went through something similar a few years ago with Nevada UI while living in CA. One tip that really helped me was to set up a separate savings account just for taxes and automatically transfer about 25-30% of each UI payment into it. That way I wasn't tempted to spend the tax money and had enough saved when filing time came around. Also, both states should send you 1099-G forms in January - make sure to keep both copies since you'll need them for filing in each state. The dual filing is annoying but manageable if you stay organized throughout the year.

One final piece of advice: during your hearing, if the ALJ asks if you would have remained employed had your hours not been reduced, make sure to clearly state YES. This is crucial because it establishes that the reduction in hours was the sole reason for your separation, not that you simply wanted to leave the job. The legal standard they're looking at is whether a reasonable person in your situation would have felt compelled to quit. The significant reduction in hours (going from 38 to 12) should qualify as good cause, but you need to articulate clearly how this made it impossible to meet your basic financial obligations. Also, if you haven't already, calculate exactly what percentage reduction in pay this represented. A 68% reduction in hours will make a strong impression on the judge.

I went through this exact same situation about 6 months ago - hour reduction from full-time to part-time and EDD initially denied my claim saying I "voluntarily quit." I won my appeal and here's what really helped me: The magic phrase you want to use is "constructive discharge due to substantial change in working conditions." When they cut your hours from 38 to 12, that's a 68% reduction which is WAY beyond what's considered reasonable. For your hearing preparation: - Create a simple chart showing your before/after hours and pay - List your monthly expenses to show the financial impossibility - Bring any documentation showing you tried to get more hours before quitting - Practice explaining calmly why a reasonable person couldn't survive on 12 hours/week The hearing was actually less scary than I expected. The judge asked straightforward questions about the timeline and my financial situation. My former employer didn't even show up. The whole thing took maybe 20 minutes over the phone. One tip: when they ask if you looked for other work before quitting, be honest about your efforts but emphasize that you hoped the hour reduction was temporary and tried to make it work first. You've got a strong case with that significant of an hour reduction! Keep us posted on how it goes.

One additional tip: If you go with the phone hearing (which sounds like the right choice for you), make sure to prepare a one-page summary of key events with dates. When the judge asks questions, it's much easier to refer to your timeline than shuffling through papers. Keep explanations brief and factual - judges appreciate when you respect their time. Also, the average phone hearing lasts 30-45 minutes, while in-person can go longer (45-60 minutes) because of administrative procedures at the office.

I went through the same situation last year with a similar overpayment amount and chose the phone hearing - best decision I made! The judge was actually more focused on my evidence than anything else. Quick tip that really helped me: Before the hearing, I called the appeals office and asked them to confirm they received all my documentation. Turns out they were missing one of my pay stubs, so I was able to fax it over the day before. Also, during the phone hearing, I mentioned specific page numbers when referencing my evidence ("as shown on page 3 of my submitted documents") which seemed to help the judge follow along. The whole process took about 35 minutes and I won my case. The phone format actually worked in my favor because I could stay calm in my own environment and refer to my notes without feeling rushed. You've got this!