If I get fired for not working overtime can I collect unemployment in California?

Thank you — this is exactly the kind of breakdown I needed. I've been holding onto my original offer letter and I have texts from my manager referencing the overtime demands. Is there anything else I should be gathering before the fact-finding interview?

Also remember that California has some of the strongest worker protections in the country. The burden isn't entirely on you to prove you didn't commit misconduct — EDD investigates both sides.

5 weeks in adjudication sounds awful but honestly that outcome is super encouraging. Did they ever call you for a fact-finding interview or was it all done by mail?

they mailed me a questionnaire first then called me like 2 weeks later. just be honest and stick to the facts about what was in your original agreement

same thing happened to my coworker. EDD approved her after adjudication. dont give up

Oh wow I've already been trying to call EDD and can't get through. Definitely going to check this out, thank you.

I've heard of Claimyr but never tried it. Does it actually work or is it one of those things that sounds good and then does nothing lol

It worked for me, got a live agent. I think demand varies but the video on their site explains the process pretty clearly

gonna bookmark this for when i inevitably have a problem with my claim lmao

Wait — I should keep filing my weekly certifications even while in adjudication? I wasn't sure if I was supposed to pause during that process.

YES. Always keep certifying every week. If you stop certifying and then get approved, you might not get paid for those uncertified weeks. Never pause just because you're in adjudication.

this is such good advice and so many people dont know this. i stopped certifying once during an appeal and lost out on like 4 weeks of payments

I understand the frustration but this isn't quite accurate — EDD approval rates for discharged claimants are actually meaningful when the person can show the termination wasn't for genuine misconduct. Documentation really does make a difference.

maybe i just had bad luck then idk. still bitter about it

This is really helpful perspective. My employer did send me an email once mentioning 'business needs may require extended hours' — does that count as establishing mandatory overtime as a policy?

Vague language like that is very different from a clear mandatory overtime policy. 'May require' is not the same as 'will require and refusal is grounds for termination.' I wouldn't lose sleep over that email.

Agreed. Language like that is CYA boilerplate, not a binding policy.

Ugh that's heartbreaking. I'm definitely filing and fighting this one.

yeah always file. worst case they deny you and you appeal. never just assume you dont qualify

Not a dumb question at all. During adjudication you'll typically see your certifications recorded but payments will show as 'pending' or sometimes just nothing visible. It doesn't mean the certifications aren't being captured — they are. When the adjudication resolves, any approved weeks should pay out retroactively.

okay that makes me feel a lot better. i thought maybe my certifications were disappearing into a void

mine showed pending for weeks and then one day i woke up and three weeks worth of payments all hit at once. hang in there

Six weeks is on the longer side but not unheard of, especially if your former employer is actively contesting the claim. Sometimes the back-and-forth between EDD and the employer drags it out. Keep certifying, respond immediately to any correspondence, and if you need to talk to someone try calling EDD directly or look into Claimyr — claimyr.com — it helped me actually reach a live EDD agent when I was going insane waiting.

thank you. i tried calling yesterday and got the automated message saying high call volume and then it hung up on me. will look into claimyr

6 weeks happened to my brother too. he got approved eventually. the waiting is the worst part

I'm in warehousing — is that a regulated industry for overtime purposes?

Warehousing workers in California do have protections under various labor codes. AB 701 was actually specifically about warehouse quotas and worker conditions. I'd look into California Labor Commissioner resources — your situation might have additional angles.

Hearing that people do eventually win really helps my anxiety. Thank you.

document everything. every text, every email, every conversation you can remember with dates. it makes a difference

Generally yes — if adjudication resolves in your favor, EDD will process payments for all the weeks you certified during the adjudication period, as long as you were otherwise eligible (meeting job search requirements, able and available to work, etc.). You don't usually need to do anything extra, it just processes retroactively.

okay good, i was wondering if you had to like re-certify for those weeks or something. that would be a nightmare

I've been doing job searches but honestly I wasn't documenting them carefully. Going to start keeping a proper log immediately. Thank you for that reminder.

Use a spreadsheet or even just a notes app. EDD wants employer name, contact method, date, and position applied for. Super basic but you need to have it if they ever audit your certifications.

i got audited randomly once. so glad i kept my job search log. they wanted like 6 weeks of records

It's a really common misconception. 'Fired' doesn't automatically mean disqualified — California EDD has to evaluate whether the firing was for 'misconduct' as defined by law, not just because an employer decided to let someone go.

that actually makes me feel better about my own situation tbh. might need to revisit something from a while back

Good call. I'm going to put together a folder with everything — offer letter, termination notice, relevant emails from my manager, and my employment contract pages.

also ask at the end of the call what the next steps and timeline are. most interviewers will tell you what to expect next

That's really interesting. I have some documentation about the impact on my childcare situation — do you think that kind of hardship angle matters at all even if my main argument is that it wasn't in my contract?

It can be supplemental evidence. The primary argument about it not being in your contract is stronger legally, but context about why refusal was reasonable never hurts.

I actually looked into it after your first comment and bookmarked the video. Really appreciate you mentioning it twice — if this drags past another week I'm using it.

okay i finally tried claimyr after seeing it mentioned here and got through to an EDD agent today after 3 weeks of failing to reach anyone. my claim is still in adjudication but at least i know where it stands now and what to expect

glad it worked for you! 3 weeks of nothing is brutal

Standby status is generally for people attached to a specific employer expecting to return to work, like a temporary layoff situation. It's a separate thing from the regular job search requirement waiver. An existing adjudication on a prior claim could potentially complicate a new claim depending on the specifics, but it's not a blanket bar. Your partner should file as soon as they're laid off and explain the situation.

good to know, thank you. i always thought standby was just another word for adjudication and that's clearly wrong lol

This is exactly the kind of update I needed to see today. Congratulations on the approval and thank you so much for coming back to share. Gives me real hope.

love when people come back with outcomes. this is so good to hear

7 weeks is a long time but the backpay making it right is the whole point. glad it worked out

this is the way. document everything, keep certifying, don't give up