Which person would be eligible for unemployment benefits? Trying to understand California EDD rules

So she's not automatically disqualified just for quitting? I assumed EDD would just reject her claim outright.

Not automatically, no. EDD gives her a chance to explain herself in that phone interview. Whether her reason holds up is EDD's call to make, not something anyone here can predict for her specific situation.

My former manager quit her job for health reasons and she was approved after her interview. EDD takes the interviews seriously from what she told me.

She didn't really do anything formally — just told her manager she was done and walked out. Does that hurt her chances a lot?

It doesn't help, to be direct about it. EDD tends to look for some effort to resolve the problem before quitting. Without documentation or a formal complaint, her interview is going to be her main chance to explain what was happening.

i quit a job once because my commute got doubled and edd still asked me a bunch of questions about why i didnt ask for a schedule change first lol so yeah they really dig into this stuff

Six weeks pending sounds awful. Did you at least keep certifying during all of that?

Yeah, kept certifying every two weeks the whole time. The agent actually reminded me of that — said only certified weeks can be paid out once a determination is made. Good thing I didn't stop.

that pending limbo is the worst part of the whole process fr

Useful to know you can get a real person on the phone when things like that come up. I've been staring at Pending weeks on my own claim for about two weeks now and was starting to think I'd just never hear anything.

wait she gets an actual judge hearing just for an unemployment appeal?? i had no idea it went that far

Yep, that's how the California Unemployment Insurance Appeals Board works. It's a real hearing with testimony under oath. Someone can even bring a representative — a union rep, an attorney, they can represent themselves too.

She hasn't even had her interview yet so I told her not to panic about appeals yet. But good to know that's an option if things don't go her way.

We both worked there for over two years making decent wages so I think the base period stuff isn't the issue. Good to know that's a thing to check though.

This is actually something a lot of people miss when they file — they assume they qualify and then find out their hours or wages in the right quarters weren't high enough. Always worth looking at before assuming you're good.

Exactly, and if the standard base period doesn't get you there, EDD will automatically check the alternate base period — the last four completed quarters. That sometimes helps people who had a gap in employment early on.

You're right that misconduct is a fired-person concept only. Good catch — I see people mix those up all the time and think EDD is going to 'investigate' the employer when someone quits, which isn't really how it works.

Right, the interview is EDD getting her side of the story and probably contacting the employer too. It's not adversarial in the way people imagine it, it's more like EDD gathering enough info to make a call.

i definitely mixed up misconduct and good cause when i first filed lmaooo thought they were the same thing

She's already worried about money so I'll pass that range along to her. At least $385 is what I'm getting so I have something to work with.

$385 for a laid-off worker sounds right in line with what EDD would calculate for typical earnings. The hardest part for your coworker isn't the amount — it's just waiting to find out if she gets anything at all.

I did mine already but I'm going to tell my coworker about this because I'm not sure she knows. She's been so focused on the interview thing she might have missed it.

CalJOBS literally took me maybe 20 minutes to set up and upload a resume. The hardest part was remembering I had to do it at all. Tell her to check the DE 8405 date if she received that notice.

oh no i think i missed my window on caljobs someone tell me thats not as bad as it sounds

Missing the CalJOBS deadline can pause payments, but phoning EDD to explain and sorting it out usually gets things moving again. Don't just wait and hope it fixes itself — take action.

She said she's nervous about saying something wrong. I keep telling her to just be straightforward.

Straightforward is exactly right. EDD isn't trying to trick anyone — they're trying to figure out what happened. If she's honest about what the work situation was actually like, that's about all she can control.

Missing the interview is really the thing to avoid. If the interviewer phones at that time and nobody answers, EDD will just decide based on whatever info they already have, which usually means a denial. Phone EDD the same day if she somehow misses it.

Employer-reported separation reasons that don't match what the claimant says are pretty common and EDD handles them all the time. That's exactly what your phone interview will sort out — bring your termination letter if they ask for any documentation.

The termination letter is sitting right here on my desk. I've read it probably fifty times at this point. The word 'laid off' is literally in the first sentence.

Documentation like that is genuinely helpful for the interview. Keep it ready. The interviewer may ask you to describe what happened in your own words first, then the letter backs up what you're saying.

i thought the waiting week was removed permanently after covid, can someone confirm??

Nope, the waiting week is back and it's part of every new claim now. The pandemic-era suspension is long gone. You'll certify for it but won't get paid for that first week.

I did wonder why my first payment only covered one week. That explains it — I served the waiting week and just didn't realize that's what was happening.

That's a really important point. I'll make sure she knows — she definitely seems like the type who'd stop certifying if she got a denial letter.

It's genuinely one of the most common mistakes in the appeals situation. The appeal form DE 1000M is included with the Notice of Determination. She should file that and keep certifying like nothing changed.

30 days from the mailing date on that denial notice is the window. Not 30 days from when you open it or receive it — the mailing date printed on the notice itself.

Oh that's a good one. She did change her number a few months back and I have no idea if she updated EDD. I'll text her right now.

Seriously, that is so worth checking. Getting a new phone number and forgetting to update it in myEDD is how people miss their interview completely.

The DE 4800 notice about the phone interview is easy to miss if you're not watching for mail carefully. EDD mails it and the interview date is also listed on the UI Online homepage once it's scheduled — both places worth checking regularly.

UI Online homepage!! i never even thought to look there i just kept checking my claim history

wait if someone is out sick for one week but working other weeks, do they lose the entire claim or just that one week?

Just that specific week where they weren't able to work. The rest of the claim continues normally. They'd stop certifying unemployment for that week and potentially file for Disability Insurance for the sick days.

She mentioned feeling burned out but she's definitely physically able to work and is actively looking. So I think she's fine on that front.

I actually chose the withholding option when I certified. Learned from someone else's mistake on that one.

smart move honestly. getting a tax bill after being unemployed all year is a rough combination

The 1099G is also in UI Online under Payments if you want to access it before the mail version shows up — usually available by January 31 each year.

I did get a small severance payout. Good to know I could still file — I was worried about reporting it and having my benefits cut entirely.

Yeah, filing right away is correct. The severance gets reported and EDD sorts out what it means for each week — it doesn't just wipe out your claim. Vacation pay and holiday pay that got cashed out at separation are also on that reporting list, just so you know.

The waiver process is real but EDD does look carefully at whether the claimant was at fault for the overpayment. If she certified honestly and EDD initially approved her and then reversed, that's the kind of situation where a waiver request makes sense.

Right, the form is the Application for Overpayment Waiver and EDD weighs everything. Worth knowing the option exists rather than panicking if a repayment notice shows up.

i didn't know that form existed. i thought if EDD said you owe money you just had to pay it no questions asked

Hours getting cut that drastically — is that really treated like quitting? I would have assumed that was more like a partial layoff situation.

EDD looked at it as a quit since I was the one who left, but the reason behind it — the drastic hours cut — is what the interview was really about. The agent didn't tell me I'd be approved obviously, just explained what they'd be asking about. EDD decides.

That's actually a pretty common situation where someone has a legitimate reason for quitting that EDD will hear out. The key is exactly what the agent said — having the interview and letting EDD evaluate the full picture.

I literally thought the DE 429Z WAS my approval. Glad I know the difference now — my coworker definitely thinks that too.

The DE 429Z showing up is a good sign that the claim has been received and your wages are on file, but it's not a green light on eligibility. Payments showing up for certified weeks is when you know EDD is good with things.

The mix-up between the DE 429Z and an actual eligibility determination is really common. EDD's documents aren't the most clearly labeled things in the world, to put it generously.

She's also not registered in CalJOBS yet from what I can tell. Would an AJCC help her set that up?

CalJOBS is something she can set up herself pretty quickly at caljobs.ca.gov but an AJCC can walk her through it in person if she wants some guidance. They're mainly there for job search support, resume help, that kind of thing.

i didn't know about the live chat at all this whole time, been just refreshing UI Online and stressing

The chat is definitely worth trying for quick questions. It won't resolve an adjudication hold on its own but you can at least confirm what's sitting open on your account.

Tell her to be near her phone at the exact time on the DE 4800 and to have the interview date also confirmed on her UI Online homepage. Clear head, honest answers, and she's done everything she can on her end.

The fact that she has the interview scheduled and CalJOBS sorted is genuinely the two biggest hurdles for a quit claim. Everything else is just waiting on EDD's decision now.

Fingers crossed for her. The interview really is the key moment — after that it's out of her hands and EDD makes the call.