EDD certifying with new part-time job but no paycheck yet - how to report hours?

You absolutely need to report the hours you worked for the week even if you haven't been paid yet. EDD cares about when you EARNED the money, not when you received it. So report the hours you worked and calculate what your gross earnings will be (hours × hourly rate) for each week in the certification period. This is a common mistake people make, but incorrectly reporting can lead to overpayments that you'll have to pay back later.

yea what the person above said. its when u EARNED it not when u GET paid. made that mistake myself once and had a whole thing with EDD about it later

I went through this exact situation last year when I got a part-time job at Starbucks! You have to report based on when you WORKED, not when you got paid. If your pay period at Target is different from your certification weeks with EDD, it gets extra confusing. Make sure you're calculating exactly which hours fall into which certification week. I ended up making a little spreadsheet to keep track of it all because I was so paranoid about making a mistake!

they made me pay back the difference plus a small penalty. not worth the hassle trust me!!

EDD certification weeks run from Sunday to Saturday. So for any certification period, you need to calculate exactly what you earned during each of those weeks regardless of your employer's pay period. For example: If you certify for June 4-17: Week 1 (June 4-10): Add up all hours worked during just these dates × your hourly rate Week 2 (June 11-17): Add up all hours worked during just these dates × your hourly rate Your Target pay period is irrelevant to how you report to EDD.

The EDD system is NOT user friendly at all!!! Been on unemployment 3 times in my career and every time there's something confusing like this. But yes, always report when EARNED not when PAID. Actually had my benefits disqualified once because I reported wrong and had to go through the whole appeal process which took FOREVER AND A DAY to resolve!!

Also don't forget that they want GROSS pay (before taxes and deductions) not your net/take-home pay

If you're struggling to get through to EDD to ask questions like these, I recently used a service called Claimyr that got me through to an EDD rep in about 20 minutes instead of calling for days. Their website is claimyr.com and they have a video showing how it works: https://youtu.be/JmuwXR7HA10?si=TSwYbu_GOwYzt9km I was in a similar situation with reporting income from a new job and needed clarification on how to handle the timing differences. The EDD rep I spoke with walked me through exactly how to fill out the certification correctly.

Oh also! Make sure you're answering the "Are you looking for work?" question correctly. Even though you have a part-time job, if you're still collecting partial unemployment, you need to be looking for additional work. I made this mistake thinking since I had a job I could say "no" - but because it was part-time and I was still getting benefits, I was supposed to say "yes" and continue my work search activities.

What's your hourly rate at Target? If it's high enough you might not even qualify for partial benefits once you start working. For each certification week, EDD subtracts the first $99 of earnings, then reduces your weekly benefit amount dollar for dollar for earnings beyond that. So if your WBA is $350 and you earn $300 in a week, they subtract $99, leaving $201, then subtract that from your WBA: $350-$201=$149 payment for that week.

Just want to add - when you're calculating your hours for certification, make sure you include ANY time you're on the clock, including training time, breaks that you're paid for, etc. I made the mistake of only counting my "productive" work hours at first and not including the 2-day paid training when I started my retail job. EDD counts ALL compensated time as earnings, so be thorough with your calculations!

I went through this exact same situation when I started at Home Depot while on unemployment! The key thing to remember is that EDD wants you to report earnings for the week you WORKED, not when you get paid. So yes, report those Target hours and calculate your gross pay (hours x $19/hr) even though your paycheck hasn't arrived yet. Also make sure you're breaking down your hours by EDD's certification weeks (Sunday to Saturday) - don't worry about Target's pay period schedule. And definitely keep documenting your work search activities since you'll still be partially unemployed and receiving reduced benefits. Good luck with the new job!

Hey everyone, I'm new here but going through something similar! I just started a part-time gig at a local grocery store and was totally panicking about how to handle my first certification. Reading through all these responses has been SO helpful - I had no idea about reporting when you EARN vs when you GET PAID. That seems like such an important distinction that EDD should make clearer on their forms! Also really glad someone mentioned the work search requirement because I definitely would have stopped doing job searches thinking "well I have a job now." Sounds like there are so many little details that can trip you up. Thanks for sharing your experiences everyone - this community is a lifesaver for navigating all the EDD confusion!