Unemployment who pays for it - California EDD question

UI tax comes entirely from your employer's pocket - nothing ever gets pulled from your paycheck for it. The CASDI line you're seeing on your stubs? That one covers State Disability Insurance and Paid Family Leave, which is a totally separate thing. Your boss has been paying into an unemployment insurance tax fund the whole time you worked there, and that's what your benefits come out of. So your coworker has it backwards - workers don't fund unemployment, employers do. As for the DE 429Z, that form just shows what your claim could pay out, not that EDD has officially decided you qualify yet. And yes, check whether you got a Notice of Requirement to Register for Work - if you did, you've got 21 days from that date to get registered in CalJOBS and post a resume, or your payments could get held up. I'd take care of that sooner rather than later. Used Claimyr (claimyr.com) last month when my claim had a question about my last employer's wages on file - the agent walked me through exactly which weeks were pending and why. They've got a video showing how reaching a live person at EDD actually works: https://youtu.be/JmuwXR7HA10

DE 429Z showing up does not mean approved - worth repeating because a lot of people think that letter means they're good to go. All it confirms is the dollar amount your claim could pay if EDD decides you're eligible. The actual eligibility decision comes separately, and if there's any question about why you stopped working EDD will schedule a phone interview first. Since you said you were laid off you're probably fine, but if EDD does open a question you'll get a DE 4800 notice with the interview date and time on it - keep your phone nearby at that scheduled time because that's when the interviewer phones.

On the CalJOBS question specifically - once you register at caljobs.ca.gov you need to post a resume there, not just create an account. Some people register and think they're done but posting the resume is the actual requirement. The 21-day clock starts from the date on the DE 8405 notice EDD sends, not from when you filed your claim, so check that date carefully.

NOBODY told me about the employer paying thing when I first filed and I spent like two weeks feeling guilty about claiming!! The whole system is designed to make you feel like you're asking for a handout when actually your employer was required to pay into this fund. The EDD website barely makes this clear anywhere obvious. Had to dig through multiple pages to find any plain language about it.

Quick thing on the work search side since you asked about CalJOBS - every week you certify you have to confirm you were able to work, available for work, and looking for work. EDD doesn't publish an exact number of applications you need to make, but keeping your own notes on where you applied and when is a smart habit while your claim is open. If EDD ever questions a week those records are useful to have.

Something that tripped up my cousin - she thought because her company was a nonprofit the rules were different for unemployment. Nonprofits still have to cover their former workers' unemployment, the funding mechanism can differ but workers at nonprofits file claims just like anyone else and get paid the same way. So if anyone reading this worked for a nonprofit and is hesitating, don't.

wait so if your employer funds it and they just laid you off are they like upset that you file? asking because my manager made a comment when our department got laid off about 'everyone rushing to file claims

DE 429Z weekly amount question - mine showed $285 when I first got it and I was confused because I thought my wages were higher than that. Turns out it's calculated from the highest-paid quarter in your base period, which is the first four of the last five completed calendar quarters before you filed. If you got a raise recently that might fall outside that window, which is frustrating but it's just how the calculation works. You can run the numbers yourself with EDD's benefit calculator on edd.ca.gov.

Payroll deductions are always confusing and I remember staring at my own stubs trying to figure out what everything was. CASDI is for disability and paid family leave as others said. Federal income tax and state income tax are obvious. Social security and Medicare. UI tax never shows up as a worker deduction because workers aren't paying it. Your employer has a whole other set of taxes they pay on top of your wages that you never see.

Since this thread has the CalJOBS question - there's a physical location option too if you're having trouble with the website. America's Job Centers of California have staff who can help with job search stuff, resume workshops, things like that. They don't file or process claims but if you're struggling with the CalJOBS registration they might be able to help you get it set up. Find one near you through EDD's office locator on edd.ca.gov.

To finish answering the original question fully - the weekly benefit amount on your DE 429Z runs from $40 to $450 depending on your wages. Max a full claim pays out is 26 weeks of your weekly amount, or half your total base period wages, whichever is less. After 26 weeks there's no automatic extension in California unless there's a special program triggered by high unemployment, and those aren't active right now. So use the full 26 weeks if you need them, but keep job searching.

Payments land on a Money Network prepaid card automatically unless you switch to direct deposit through myEDD at https://myedd.edd.ca.gov/ - that's worth doing right away if you'd rather have it go straight to your bank account. Can be changed in your account settings. Payment info updates daily in UI Online and you can also check through EDD's automated line at 1-866-333-4606 anytime, that one runs 24 hours.

my layoff last spring I was in a similar situation wondering about the employer funding thing. filed the claim, got the DE 429Z, registered CalJOBS, all went through fine. The part people don't realize is you need to actually certify every two weeks to keep the payments coming - EDD doesn't just send money automatically, you have to log in and certify through UI Online or call the Tele-Cert line at 1-866-333-4606 and pick option 2 with your PIN. Missing a certification period means that money doesn't get paid for those weeks.

Taxes on benefits - worth knowing early. Unemployment benefits count as federal taxable income. At each certification you can opt to have 10 percent withheld for federal taxes. California doesn't tax unemployment benefits at the state level though. EDD mails a 1099G every January and it's also available in UI Online under Payments. If you don't set up withholding now you might owe at tax time, so something to think about.

Layoff situation coming from the employer side of things briefly - when you filed, EDD sent your former employer a DE 1101CZ notice. They had 10 days to respond with any information about why you stopped working. For a standard layoff they typically just confirm it and move on. The employer can't overturn or deny what EDD decides, they can only provide information and appeal a decision themselves if they disagree. EDD has the final call on eligibility every time.

Update from OP - registered in CalJOBS this afternoon and posted my resume. Also set up direct deposit through myEDD. I think the main question is answered: employers pay the UI tax, nothing comes out of my check for it, and the CASDI deduction was for disability/PFL all along. My coworker was just wrong. Really appreciate everyone explaining this.

Something worth knowing for anyone who gets a question opened on their claim - like if EDD needs to verify something or there's any issue with wages - the UI Online Claim History section will show pending weeks but won't tell you exactly what's being reviewed. That's when actually talking to an EDD agent matters. Had a pending week on my last claim that showed no explanation in Claim History. DE 429Z had come in already, CalJOBS was done, everything looked right. Used Claimyr last fall to reach an agent about it - the agent found that one week from my base period still needed wage verification from my former employer. Knowing exactly what was holding it up meant I could stop guessing.

For anyone reading this later - partial unemployment is a thing too. If you get your hours cut significantly instead of fully laid off, you can still file a claim if your reduced earnings fall below your weekly benefit amount. You'd report your earnings during certification and EDD calculates how much you get for that week. The first $25 or 25 percent of gross earnings in a week (whichever is bigger) doesn't count against you, the rest gets subtracted from your weekly amount. So working part time doesn't necessarily knock you off the claim entirely.

Last practical thing on the appeals front since the thread covered a lot of ground - if anything comes back with a denial, the Notice of Determination DE 1080CZ will have an Appeal Form DE 1000M included. You have 30 calendar days from the mailing date on that notice to file a written appeal. Keep certifying through the whole appeal period even if everything is showing denied - EDD can only pay back weeks that were actually certified, so stopping certification while you appeal means those weeks can't be recovered.

For anyone still confused about the base period and the weekly amount calculation - wages from your most recent months might not be in the standard base period at all. The standard window looks at the first four of the last five completed calendar quarters. So if you filed in November 2026, your most recent full quarter ending September 2026 sits outside the standard window and doesn't get counted. That's why a recent raise or high-earning period can feel like it's being ignored. EDD's benefit calculator on edd.ca.gov lets you plug in quarterly wages to see the estimate before the DE 429Z arrives.

Severance pay question for anyone who gets it - a lot of people think they can't file until their severance runs out. EDD's rules say severance paid under a company plan or policy isn't counted as wages for UI purposes, so it doesn't block you from filing right away. Still put it in when certifying asks about income, and EDD works out what if anything it affects. But waiting to file because you got severance means you're just delaying your claim start date unnecessarily.