California’s Unemployment System Still Isn’t Working for Many People Who Need It the Most

California’s Employment Development Department (EDD) is responsible for paying out the state’s unemployment claims. Ever since the pandemic began, the agency has struggled to close its huge backlog of claims. The system is even more frustrating for people who struggle with technology and language access, and advocates say these issues are still a big problem today. 

Guest: Mary Franklin Harvin, KQED reporter and producer for The California Report

Episode transcript here.

Claiming unemployment in California? Here’s what to know about EDD and pandemic federal benefits.

These organizations provide multilingual assistance in applying for unemployment benefits. Below is their contact information, and the languages in which they offer support:

Northern California:

• San Francisco’s Office of Economic and Workforce Development: Its hotline is available for workers impacted by pandemic-related hardships in Cantonese, Mandarin, Russian, Spanish, Tagalog and Vietnamese.
  • Call: 415-701-4817 or email: [email protected]
• Southeast Asian Development Center: Available in Lao, Vietnamese and Thai.
  • Call: 415-771-2600
• Oakland’s Alem Center for Integration, supporting Eritrean & Ethiopian communities: Available in Tigrinya and Amharic.
  • Call: 510-904-4305 or 415-779-2274

These organizations can provide support in Cantonese and Mandarin.

• Asian Law Caucus: 415-896-1701
• Chinese for Affirmative Action: 415-598-8508
• Chinese Progressive Association: 415-391-6986
• Legal Aid at Work: 866-864-8208
• Legal Aid of Northern California:
  • Sacramento: 916-551-2150
  • Redding: 530-241-3565
  • Vallejo: 707-643-0054