Welcome to one of the biggest programs
of the California Employment Development Department:
Unemployment Insurance.
I'm Loree Levy, a deputy director here at EDD.
If you are looking to apply for unemployment insurance
benefits in California you are in the right place
and we are here to help you.
This is one of six call centers throughout California
that helps you receive your important benefits.
When you place a call or push the send button on your computer
to file an unemployment insurance claim,
this is where it goes.
Employment Development Department, this is Erika,
how may I help you?
During this recession, demand for unemployment services
is in an all-time high.
We are currently getting far more calls
that we ever typically received.
We know unemployment is a very stressful time.
People who contact us
are often worried, scared and frustrated.
Add to that trying to file for unemployment benefits
and the whole process can seem a bit overwhelming.
So in this video we've summarized
the most important information you'll need
to get your benefits and created this checklist.
Using this checklist will help make your experience
as easy as possible
and help us better serve you.
Let's start by getting your social security number.
I'll take a look at your claim and see what I can do to help.
We also ask for the very last day you worked
at your very last employer,
as well as their phone number, address and their complete name.
Do you have all that information with you?
If your job has ended or your employer
has cut back your work hours, through no fault of your own,
you may be eligible to collect unemployment benefits
to help you get by while you look for a new job.
To collect these benefits you must have worked
and received enough wages during the last 18 months,
be able, available and looking for work,
and meet these requirements each week you collect benefits.
How much you can earn in benefits depends on how much
you earned in wages over the course of a 12-month period.
We call it "the base wage period".
The weekly benefit amount ranges from $40 to $450 a week.
There are basically 3 ways to file for unemployment benefits:
First, you can phone into a call center like this one.
Second, you can visit our Web site
and apply on-line.
Or third, print out a hard copy of the application
or fill it on the computer and mail or fax it back to us.
But applying on line
is the fastest and easiest way to file a claim.
A vast majority of unemployed workers
should be able to use this option.
Now remember that checklist we talked about?
The first thing we'd like you to do,
if you haven't already done so, is to print it out
so you can follow this video and make any notes you might need.
Look for the link to the checklist on our Web site
click and print.
Providing us with the information on this checklist
gives us the details we need to know about your job separation
and your earnings, so we can determine your eligibility.
I'm going to need the name of your very last employer.
Do you have that information in front of you?
In order to make filing for benefits
as fast and easy as possible please take the time to collect
all the information on the checklist
before sitting down at the computer
or picking up the phone to file a claim.
Now, at the top of the checklist there is a friendly reminder.
It says to "apply for unemployment benefits"
immediately when your job has ended
or your employer has cut back your work hours.
That's because the start date of your claim
is based on when you file, not when the job ended.
Claims start on the Sunday of the week in which you apply.
The rest of the list is divided into two sections:
Information about you, the claimant,
and information about your employer.
Let's start with your information.
First, we'll need your social security number.
Then, we'll need your name, including all other
complete names you may have used in the course of work
in the last year and a half, like nicknames, initials,
or maiden names.
We'll need your mailing address
and your telephone number.
Next, we'll need your drivers license
or ID card number.
Is you are not a citizen, we'll need
your alien registration number and expiration date.
And if your served in the Military
or worked for the Federal Government in the last 18 months
we'll need some specific documents from you
relating to your employer.
You can find details on our Web site.
Regarding your last employer,
we need the name of the company you worked for most recently.
If you worked today, you should indicate
the name of the company that you worked for today
even if it was a temporary or part-time employer.
The last employer name you should use is the name
as it appears on your paycheck stub or W-2 form.
This could be a payroll or staffing agency.
We're also going to need
your last employer's complete mailing address
including zip code, their phone number
and the name of your last supervisor,
as well as the reason you are no longer working
for that employer or are working reduced hours.
Finally, if you had more than one employer
during the last 18 months,
we'll also need information about that employment history.
Providing this information
will help you avoid delays with your claim.
It includes the names of all employers you've worked for
as they appear on your paycheck stub or W-2 form.
You'll also need to know the start and end dates
of each period of employment in the last 18 month period.
And it's important to report the gross earnings you were paid
by those employers, how you were paid
- for instance hourly, weekly or monthly -
and any additional payments
you received or are expecting to receive
from your last employers, like holiday pay or severance pay.
Having all of this information readily available
will help make applying for your benefits much easier.
After you file, please allow 10 days for processing.
You should receive some items in the mail,
including an unemployment insurance handbook
that provides a great deal of helpful information
about unemployment benefits,
your rights and responsibilities.
A verification of the details that you're reporting to us.
The benefit amount you could be eligible for.
And, if there are any eligibility issues
associated with your claim,
you'll also receive a notice of a scheduled phone interview
so we can get some further information from you.
If by any chance you don't receive anything in the mail
from EDD within 10 days of filing your application
please contact us.
You can call one of our call centers
through the toll-free phone number at 1-800-300-5616.
Or you can visit our Web site at www.edd.ca.gov
and submit an online enquiry
through the "Contact EDD" feature on the front page.
Look for our Website for access to other educational videos
as well as "tip sheets" to help you properly complete
your bi-weekly claim form
and access your check information by telephone.
We hope this checklist
and the other information we've given you
will make your experience
in applying for unemployment insurance benefits
as easy as possible.
At EDD, we're here to help.