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"title": "Despite Overhaul, California's Unemployment System Still Plagued With Fraud, Debt",
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"content": "\u003cp>Kim Tanner didn’t expect to become a fraud detective when she filed for disability with the California Employment Development Department.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But in mid-July, $3,161 vanished from her online account with the state’s new debit card contractor, Money Network, according to Tanner’s complaints to government regulators. Someone had gotten access to her online debit card account, added a new bank account and transferred out her money, all without any notifications, she wrote in the complaints.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Tanner said Money Network told her it could take 90 days to investigate and that she may or may not get a full refund, leaving her short on rent money. She turned to social media and saw similar horror stories on Reddit and Facebook. “My head exploded,” Tanner said. “This was happening to tons of people.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>So, she started filing complaints. First, with Money Network, its parent company Fiserv, and the EDD. Then, with a state senator and a half-dozen financial regulators.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It just went on and on and on,” said Tanner, who got her money back via paper check about a month and a half later after a federal agency intervened. “This needs to be investigated.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[aside label='Related Coverage' tag='unemployment-fraud']\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A CalMatters investigation a year ago exposed how the EDD’s unemployment system crashed during the pandemic, the result of historic job losses, years of missed warning signs and poor contractor performance. As a result, the system at first failed to stop widespread fraud, then cut off access to millions of real people who used it as a crucial lifeline.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Now, even with a new payment contractor in place, concerns about fraud linger for people who rely on unemployment and disability programs run by the EDD. Multiple lawsuits and 74 federal consumer complaints about government debit cards have been filed by Californians against Money Network this year alone. The EDD and the company say the debit card fraud is smaller scale than the varied forms of fraud during the pandemic.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>On top of the fraud complaints, a report released Monday by the Legislative Analyst’s Office warns that lawmakers are failing to address a bigger unemployment problem: a “broken” financial model, one that threatens the whole system.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>California’s unemployment fund is still $20 billion in debt to the federal government after the state took out loans to cover pandemic benefits, costing taxpayers $1 billion in annual interest — more than the state spends on child welfare. Now, after years of ignoring calls to modernize the state’s 1980s-era unemployment tax code, the system is on track to lose $2 billion a year as it fails to bring in enough revenue to cover unemployment expenses, according to the report.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The Legislative Analyst’s Office, which provides fiscal and policy advice to state lawmakers, says the state needs to bring unemployment taxes in line with other states to cover the deficit.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“This is entirely avoidable,” said LAO policy analyst Chas Alamo.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12016645\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 1200px\">\u003ca href=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/12/101124_Kim-Tanner-EDD_AH_CM_04.jpg\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-12016645 size-full\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/12/101124_Kim-Tanner-EDD_AH_CM_04.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1200\" height=\"1500\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/12/101124_Kim-Tanner-EDD_AH_CM_04.jpg 1200w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/12/101124_Kim-Tanner-EDD_AH_CM_04-800x1000.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/12/101124_Kim-Tanner-EDD_AH_CM_04-1020x1275.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/12/101124_Kim-Tanner-EDD_AH_CM_04-160x200.jpg 160w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px\">\u003c/a>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Kim Tanner at her home in Carlsbad. \u003ccite>( Adriana Heldiz/CalMatters)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>The recommendations could force a reckoning for lawmakers caught between business and labor advocates. Business groups have fought tax increases, favoring California’s current lowest-in-the-nation unemployment tax base. Labor groups argue that taxes must go up to stabilize the system. Then, they say, lawmakers should evaluate measures to expand which workers are eligible for unemployment or raise California’s $450-a-week maximum payment, which is also lower than many other states.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>What happens next will be one test of how legislative leaders respond to voters’ rebuke of Democratic leadership nationwide, with the Legislature’s Democratic leadership pledging to do more to make California a less expensive place to live.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Meanwhile, the EDD has already secured funding for an unprecedented five-year, $1.2 billion effort called EDDNext to finally modernize the call centers, software and websites that power the state’s job safety net — a more ambitious version of past modernization efforts that crumbled during the pandemic.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Whether or not history will repeat itself is complicated by unanswered questions about what went wrong at the EDD during the pandemic and how the state scrambled to recover.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Former California labor chief Julie Su went on to become acting U.S. labor secretary and one of the longest-unconfirmed presidential nominees in history, thanks in part to criticism over unemployment fraud.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Gov. Gavin Newsom’s administration has denied CalMatters’ repeated requests for internal records from this period, citing an exemption that allows the governor to keep his communications secret if he chooses.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>The fraud factor\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>During the pandemic, a wide range of fraud schemes hit the unemployment system at once. Global hackers used large-scale identity theft. Low-level social media scammers and prison inmates adopted fake names to file for benefits under emergency federal programs that waived normal identity checks. Debit card scammers cloned insecure EDD cards then run by Bank of America and drained the accounts.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Millions of real California workers got caught up in the mess, state audits found. Some saw their EDD accounts flagged as suspicious due to clerical errors, communication failures or faulty fraud software. Laid-off workers saw EDD debit cards overdrawn by thousands of dollars or cut off as the bank and the state scrambled to rein in fraud.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>California and other states were partially let off the hook when the federal government agreed to absorb the bulk of the billions lost to fraud in emergency programs. After Bank of America pulled out of the unemployment business last year, the EDD tried to turn the page on debit card fraud by hiring Georgia finance tech company Money Network to take over.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The scope and details of the current fraud that workers allege isn’t clear. State auditors and financial regulators haven’t analyzed it; lawsuits and regulatory complaints only show that money disappeared from workers’ accounts, not how it was taken.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, which previously fined Bank of America $100 million over what it called “botched” pandemic unemployment payments, declined to answer questions about new complaints. The bureau’s public records show that Californians have filed 149 complaints against Money Network since 2022, when the company first started running a different state debit card program, with 101 complaints mentioning government cards.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Money Network said in a statement that “only a small percentage of EDD recipients have reported suspected fraud” and that anyone concerned should “call the number listed on the back of their card.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The EDD and Money Network also now allow direct deposit, giving people the option of skipping debit cards altogether. Since direct deposit launched in June, about 15% of new applicants have opted for debit cards, the EDD said in a statement. The agency could not immediately say how many of its hundreds of thousands of existing customers still use debit cards.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Anyone who suspects they are a victim of fraud should take steps to protect themselves and file a fraud report,” the EDD said in a statement.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12016647\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 1200px\">\u003ca href=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/12/101124_Kim-Tanner-EDD_AH_CM_17.jpg\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-12016647 size-full\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/12/101124_Kim-Tanner-EDD_AH_CM_17.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1200\" height=\"800\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/12/101124_Kim-Tanner-EDD_AH_CM_17.jpg 1200w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/12/101124_Kim-Tanner-EDD_AH_CM_17-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/12/101124_Kim-Tanner-EDD_AH_CM_17-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/12/101124_Kim-Tanner-EDD_AH_CM_17-160x107.jpg 160w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px\">\u003c/a>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">A flyer for identity theft resources and information sits on top of other documentation related to Kim Tanner’s financial fraud case on her desk at her home in Carlsbad on Oct. 11, 2024. \u003ccite>( Adriana Heldiz/CalMatters)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Lea Bitton was still reeling from a high-risk pregnancy when it happened to her.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>One evening in June, the Orange County resident logged into her Money Network disability account and realized that $4,000 was missing. She relied on the EDD money to cover her family’s costs during parental leave.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Someone Bitton didn’t know had hacked into her account, according to a lawsuit she filed against Money Network. Similar to Tanner’s case in Carlsbad, a new electronic transfer was set up for someone with a different name and bank account, and Bitton was never asked to authorize the change before the money disappeared.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Matthew Loker, Bitton’s attorney, said the fraud appears similar to some EDD debit card fraud cases that he handled during the pandemic.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s deja vu a little bit,” Loker said. “It’s a difficult problem, but it shouldn’t be the consumers who are left holding the bag.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>If fraud occurs once unemployment or disability money has already been transferred from the EDD to Money Network, the state’s contract says that Money Network is responsible for investigating and reimbursing clients if necessary. However, some people with EDD Money Network debit cards say that it isn’t always easy to figure out how to start that process.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In Los Angeles, Greg Zekowski filed for unemployment while in between film projects. He hadn’t even used his EDD Money Network debit card yet, he said, when he logged into the online account and saw several unfamiliar charges to Uber and other retailers.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>He called Money Network. “Their response was, ‘The problem is EDD,’” Zekowski said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>So he called the EDD: “Their response was, ‘It’s all them.’”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The EDD and its contractors aren’t alone. The state’s food assistance and college financial aid programs are also among the many financial systems facing mounting fraud risks.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>One broader challenge is how few financial institutions bid on government benefit projects. The lack of options puts more pressure on agencies working to secure debit cards and other payments, according to a 2023 report by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Providers may face minimal competitive pressure from program innovation, new entrants, or customer choice,” the report authors wrote, “which may exacerbate or cause the issues with fees and customer service that benefits recipients face.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A financial cliff\u003cbr>\nWhile the EDD and the people who rely on it play whack-a-mole with fraud, California has big decisions to make about the future of the state’s job safety net.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>If the state continues to do nothing, the LAO projected this week, it will have no unemployment reserves and become even more reliant on loans from the federal government to weather future recessions, likely costing taxpayers billions more in interest.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Or the state can bite the bullet, as many others have, and change the way it pays for unemployment.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12016648\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 1200px\">\u003ca href=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/12/011022-EDD-Sacramento-MG-CM-03.jpg\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-12016648 size-full\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/12/011022-EDD-Sacramento-MG-CM-03.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1200\" height=\"800\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/12/011022-EDD-Sacramento-MG-CM-03.jpg 1200w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/12/011022-EDD-Sacramento-MG-CM-03-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/12/011022-EDD-Sacramento-MG-CM-03-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/12/011022-EDD-Sacramento-MG-CM-03-160x107.jpg 160w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px\">\u003c/a>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">The offices of the Employment Development Department in Sacramento. \u003ccite>(Miguel Gutierrez Jr./CalMatters)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>First, the LAO recommends that businesses pay a flat 1.9% unemployment tax while digging out of debt. California companies also currently only pay unemployment taxes on the first $7,000 a worker earns each year. Instead, the LAO recommends taxing employers on workers’ first $46,800 in earnings — higher than some neighbors like Nevada but lower than Washington, Idaho and Oregon.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We understand that the scope of the recommendations that we’re putting forward in this report are significant,” said LAO analyst Ann Hollingshead. “This is just an honest reflection of the severity of the underlying problems in the system.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>State lawmakers last revamped unemployment taxes in 1984. And businesses are already voicing opposition to temporary tax hikes to pay down California’s deep federal debt. One bill to recalibrate how the system is paid for — raising unemployment taxes to eventually increase weekly benefits — died in committee this year.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Robert Moutrie, a policy advocate for the California Chamber of Commerce, said that the business group is still reviewing the details of the LAO proposal. In the past, the Chamber has favored tightening unemployment eligibility to reduce benefit payments, labeling any form of tax increases and proposals to expand the unemployment system “job killers.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Daniela Urban, executive director of the Sacramento Center for Workers’ Rights, said there is broad agreement on how unstable the current situation is but discord on where to go from here. She and other labor advocates say that unemployment is one area where California businesses have long underpaid compared to other states and that the system has not kept up with non-traditional jobs and increasing costs of living.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We’re in a huge hole, and that’s not financially acceptable,” Urban said. “But how and when to make those changes, I think, is what the contention is.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In addition to the funding hole, the pandemic revealed other problems at EDD. Tech systems buckled: jammed call centers, spotty online accounts and a patchwork behind-the-scenes process for tracking unemployment claims. The agency is currently overhauling these systems with EDDNext.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Last year, the agency hired Salesforce to remake the MyEDD online system that workers use to manage their accounts. It brought in Amazon Web Services to update and integrate EDD phone systems that left as many as 40 million calls a month unanswered during the pandemic.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Early next year, the state will award a contract for the biggest chunk of the project — a new central system for EDD personnel to manage claims, which comes with more than 600 pages of specifications.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad floatright]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We are making tremendous investments in modernizing EDD, and the work is going well,” the agency said in a statement.\u003c/p>\n\n",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>Kim Tanner didn’t expect to become a fraud detective when she filed for disability with the California Employment Development Department.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But in mid-July, $3,161 vanished from her online account with the state’s new debit card contractor, Money Network, according to Tanner’s complaints to government regulators. Someone had gotten access to her online debit card account, added a new bank account and transferred out her money, all without any notifications, she wrote in the complaints.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Tanner said Money Network told her it could take 90 days to investigate and that she may or may not get a full refund, leaving her short on rent money. She turned to social media and saw similar horror stories on Reddit and Facebook. “My head exploded,” Tanner said. “This was happening to tons of people.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>So, she started filing complaints. First, with Money Network, its parent company Fiserv, and the EDD. Then, with a state senator and a half-dozen financial regulators.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It just went on and on and on,” said Tanner, who got her money back via paper check about a month and a half later after a federal agency intervened. “This needs to be investigated.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A CalMatters investigation a year ago exposed how the EDD’s unemployment system crashed during the pandemic, the result of historic job losses, years of missed warning signs and poor contractor performance. As a result, the system at first failed to stop widespread fraud, then cut off access to millions of real people who used it as a crucial lifeline.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Now, even with a new payment contractor in place, concerns about fraud linger for people who rely on unemployment and disability programs run by the EDD. Multiple lawsuits and 74 federal consumer complaints about government debit cards have been filed by Californians against Money Network this year alone. The EDD and the company say the debit card fraud is smaller scale than the varied forms of fraud during the pandemic.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>On top of the fraud complaints, a report released Monday by the Legislative Analyst’s Office warns that lawmakers are failing to address a bigger unemployment problem: a “broken” financial model, one that threatens the whole system.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>California’s unemployment fund is still $20 billion in debt to the federal government after the state took out loans to cover pandemic benefits, costing taxpayers $1 billion in annual interest — more than the state spends on child welfare. Now, after years of ignoring calls to modernize the state’s 1980s-era unemployment tax code, the system is on track to lose $2 billion a year as it fails to bring in enough revenue to cover unemployment expenses, according to the report.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The Legislative Analyst’s Office, which provides fiscal and policy advice to state lawmakers, says the state needs to bring unemployment taxes in line with other states to cover the deficit.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“This is entirely avoidable,” said LAO policy analyst Chas Alamo.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12016645\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 1200px\">\u003ca href=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/12/101124_Kim-Tanner-EDD_AH_CM_04.jpg\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-12016645 size-full\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/12/101124_Kim-Tanner-EDD_AH_CM_04.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1200\" height=\"1500\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/12/101124_Kim-Tanner-EDD_AH_CM_04.jpg 1200w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/12/101124_Kim-Tanner-EDD_AH_CM_04-800x1000.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/12/101124_Kim-Tanner-EDD_AH_CM_04-1020x1275.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/12/101124_Kim-Tanner-EDD_AH_CM_04-160x200.jpg 160w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px\">\u003c/a>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Kim Tanner at her home in Carlsbad. \u003ccite>( Adriana Heldiz/CalMatters)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>The recommendations could force a reckoning for lawmakers caught between business and labor advocates. Business groups have fought tax increases, favoring California’s current lowest-in-the-nation unemployment tax base. Labor groups argue that taxes must go up to stabilize the system. Then, they say, lawmakers should evaluate measures to expand which workers are eligible for unemployment or raise California’s $450-a-week maximum payment, which is also lower than many other states.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>What happens next will be one test of how legislative leaders respond to voters’ rebuke of Democratic leadership nationwide, with the Legislature’s Democratic leadership pledging to do more to make California a less expensive place to live.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Meanwhile, the EDD has already secured funding for an unprecedented five-year, $1.2 billion effort called EDDNext to finally modernize the call centers, software and websites that power the state’s job safety net — a more ambitious version of past modernization efforts that crumbled during the pandemic.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Whether or not history will repeat itself is complicated by unanswered questions about what went wrong at the EDD during the pandemic and how the state scrambled to recover.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Former California labor chief Julie Su went on to become acting U.S. labor secretary and one of the longest-unconfirmed presidential nominees in history, thanks in part to criticism over unemployment fraud.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Gov. Gavin Newsom’s administration has denied CalMatters’ repeated requests for internal records from this period, citing an exemption that allows the governor to keep his communications secret if he chooses.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>The fraud factor\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>During the pandemic, a wide range of fraud schemes hit the unemployment system at once. Global hackers used large-scale identity theft. Low-level social media scammers and prison inmates adopted fake names to file for benefits under emergency federal programs that waived normal identity checks. Debit card scammers cloned insecure EDD cards then run by Bank of America and drained the accounts.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Millions of real California workers got caught up in the mess, state audits found. Some saw their EDD accounts flagged as suspicious due to clerical errors, communication failures or faulty fraud software. Laid-off workers saw EDD debit cards overdrawn by thousands of dollars or cut off as the bank and the state scrambled to rein in fraud.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>California and other states were partially let off the hook when the federal government agreed to absorb the bulk of the billions lost to fraud in emergency programs. After Bank of America pulled out of the unemployment business last year, the EDD tried to turn the page on debit card fraud by hiring Georgia finance tech company Money Network to take over.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The scope and details of the current fraud that workers allege isn’t clear. State auditors and financial regulators haven’t analyzed it; lawsuits and regulatory complaints only show that money disappeared from workers’ accounts, not how it was taken.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, which previously fined Bank of America $100 million over what it called “botched” pandemic unemployment payments, declined to answer questions about new complaints. The bureau’s public records show that Californians have filed 149 complaints against Money Network since 2022, when the company first started running a different state debit card program, with 101 complaints mentioning government cards.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Money Network said in a statement that “only a small percentage of EDD recipients have reported suspected fraud” and that anyone concerned should “call the number listed on the back of their card.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The EDD and Money Network also now allow direct deposit, giving people the option of skipping debit cards altogether. Since direct deposit launched in June, about 15% of new applicants have opted for debit cards, the EDD said in a statement. The agency could not immediately say how many of its hundreds of thousands of existing customers still use debit cards.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Anyone who suspects they are a victim of fraud should take steps to protect themselves and file a fraud report,” the EDD said in a statement.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12016647\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 1200px\">\u003ca href=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/12/101124_Kim-Tanner-EDD_AH_CM_17.jpg\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-12016647 size-full\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/12/101124_Kim-Tanner-EDD_AH_CM_17.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1200\" height=\"800\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/12/101124_Kim-Tanner-EDD_AH_CM_17.jpg 1200w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/12/101124_Kim-Tanner-EDD_AH_CM_17-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/12/101124_Kim-Tanner-EDD_AH_CM_17-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/12/101124_Kim-Tanner-EDD_AH_CM_17-160x107.jpg 160w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px\">\u003c/a>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">A flyer for identity theft resources and information sits on top of other documentation related to Kim Tanner’s financial fraud case on her desk at her home in Carlsbad on Oct. 11, 2024. \u003ccite>( Adriana Heldiz/CalMatters)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Lea Bitton was still reeling from a high-risk pregnancy when it happened to her.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>One evening in June, the Orange County resident logged into her Money Network disability account and realized that $4,000 was missing. She relied on the EDD money to cover her family’s costs during parental leave.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Someone Bitton didn’t know had hacked into her account, according to a lawsuit she filed against Money Network. Similar to Tanner’s case in Carlsbad, a new electronic transfer was set up for someone with a different name and bank account, and Bitton was never asked to authorize the change before the money disappeared.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Matthew Loker, Bitton’s attorney, said the fraud appears similar to some EDD debit card fraud cases that he handled during the pandemic.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s deja vu a little bit,” Loker said. “It’s a difficult problem, but it shouldn’t be the consumers who are left holding the bag.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>If fraud occurs once unemployment or disability money has already been transferred from the EDD to Money Network, the state’s contract says that Money Network is responsible for investigating and reimbursing clients if necessary. However, some people with EDD Money Network debit cards say that it isn’t always easy to figure out how to start that process.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In Los Angeles, Greg Zekowski filed for unemployment while in between film projects. He hadn’t even used his EDD Money Network debit card yet, he said, when he logged into the online account and saw several unfamiliar charges to Uber and other retailers.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>He called Money Network. “Their response was, ‘The problem is EDD,’” Zekowski said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>So he called the EDD: “Their response was, ‘It’s all them.’”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The EDD and its contractors aren’t alone. The state’s food assistance and college financial aid programs are also among the many financial systems facing mounting fraud risks.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>One broader challenge is how few financial institutions bid on government benefit projects. The lack of options puts more pressure on agencies working to secure debit cards and other payments, according to a 2023 report by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Providers may face minimal competitive pressure from program innovation, new entrants, or customer choice,” the report authors wrote, “which may exacerbate or cause the issues with fees and customer service that benefits recipients face.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A financial cliff\u003cbr>\nWhile the EDD and the people who rely on it play whack-a-mole with fraud, California has big decisions to make about the future of the state’s job safety net.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>If the state continues to do nothing, the LAO projected this week, it will have no unemployment reserves and become even more reliant on loans from the federal government to weather future recessions, likely costing taxpayers billions more in interest.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Or the state can bite the bullet, as many others have, and change the way it pays for unemployment.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12016648\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 1200px\">\u003ca href=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/12/011022-EDD-Sacramento-MG-CM-03.jpg\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-12016648 size-full\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/12/011022-EDD-Sacramento-MG-CM-03.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1200\" height=\"800\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/12/011022-EDD-Sacramento-MG-CM-03.jpg 1200w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/12/011022-EDD-Sacramento-MG-CM-03-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/12/011022-EDD-Sacramento-MG-CM-03-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/12/011022-EDD-Sacramento-MG-CM-03-160x107.jpg 160w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px\">\u003c/a>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">The offices of the Employment Development Department in Sacramento. \u003ccite>(Miguel Gutierrez Jr./CalMatters)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>First, the LAO recommends that businesses pay a flat 1.9% unemployment tax while digging out of debt. California companies also currently only pay unemployment taxes on the first $7,000 a worker earns each year. Instead, the LAO recommends taxing employers on workers’ first $46,800 in earnings — higher than some neighbors like Nevada but lower than Washington, Idaho and Oregon.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We understand that the scope of the recommendations that we’re putting forward in this report are significant,” said LAO analyst Ann Hollingshead. “This is just an honest reflection of the severity of the underlying problems in the system.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>State lawmakers last revamped unemployment taxes in 1984. And businesses are already voicing opposition to temporary tax hikes to pay down California’s deep federal debt. One bill to recalibrate how the system is paid for — raising unemployment taxes to eventually increase weekly benefits — died in committee this year.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Robert Moutrie, a policy advocate for the California Chamber of Commerce, said that the business group is still reviewing the details of the LAO proposal. In the past, the Chamber has favored tightening unemployment eligibility to reduce benefit payments, labeling any form of tax increases and proposals to expand the unemployment system “job killers.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Daniela Urban, executive director of the Sacramento Center for Workers’ Rights, said there is broad agreement on how unstable the current situation is but discord on where to go from here. She and other labor advocates say that unemployment is one area where California businesses have long underpaid compared to other states and that the system has not kept up with non-traditional jobs and increasing costs of living.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We’re in a huge hole, and that’s not financially acceptable,” Urban said. “But how and when to make those changes, I think, is what the contention is.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In addition to the funding hole, the pandemic revealed other problems at EDD. Tech systems buckled: jammed call centers, spotty online accounts and a patchwork behind-the-scenes process for tracking unemployment claims. The agency is currently overhauling these systems with EDDNext.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Last year, the agency hired Salesforce to remake the MyEDD online system that workers use to manage their accounts. It brought in Amazon Web Services to update and integrate EDD phone systems that left as many as 40 million calls a month unanswered during the pandemic.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Early next year, the state will award a contract for the biggest chunk of the project — a new central system for EDD personnel to manage claims, which comes with more than 600 pages of specifications.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"title": "What to Do After a Layoff: Unemployment, Health Insurance, and Other Benefits",
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"content": "\u003cp>\u003cem>This guide is part of the KQED News series \u003cstrong>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/what-to-do-after-a-layoff\">What to Do After a Layoff.\u003c/a>\u003c/strong>\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Knowing what to do when you get laid off can feel like a daunting prospect — especially if losing your job came as a total shock.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>We’ve compiled a list of the initial steps to take after a layoff, to ensure you’re in as secure a place as possible. Jump straight to:\u003c/p>\n\u003cul>\n\u003cli>\u003cstrong>\u003ca href=\"#unemploymentbenefits\">Applying for unemployment benefits\u003c/a>\u003c/strong>\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>\u003cstrong>\u003ca href=\"#healthinsurance\">Keeping your health insurance\u003c/a>\u003c/strong>\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>\u003cstrong>\u003ca href=\"#otherbenefits\">Other benefits you might not know you’re eligible for\u003c/a>\u003c/strong>\u003c/li>\n\u003c/ul>\n\u003cp>… Or keep reading. As with the instructions for assembling furniture, you might find it helpful to read all this advice start to finish before you embark on these applications — to be prepared for any bumps you might encounter.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Three tips to making applying for benefits after a layoff easier\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>\u003cb>Your local government may have staff to help you do this\u003c/b>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Many cities and counties have their own offices, staff or programs specifically designed for people in your situation right now — which often have physical offices you can visit, or hotlines to call to ask a person your questions. These kinds of local resources can be particularly helpful in navigating the various benefits you could be entitled to, and aiding in the application processes.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Some offices, like the Department of Benefits and Family Support within \u003ca href=\"https://www.sfhsa.org/\">San Francisco’s Human Services Agency (SFHSA)\u003c/a>, can take your information in one central application and apply for those benefits on your behalf.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Having the help of a city staffer trained in these applications could save you a lot of time and stress, says Bart Ellison, program manager at SFHSA’s Workforce Development Division — not just because the process is streamlined, but because you’ll be able to ask these folks questions either in person or over the phone. It’s their job to help you — let them do it.\u003c/p>\n\u003cul>\n\u003cli>\u003cstrong>\u003ca href=\"#tellus\">Tell us: What else do you need information about right now?\u003c/a>\u003c/strong>\u003c/li>\n\u003c/ul>\n\u003cp>Your city or county may also have a program to help you find new employment, like \u003ca href=\"https://www.sfhsa.org/services/jobs/jobsnow\">SFHSA’s free JobsNOW! program\u003c/a>, which is open to San Francisco job seekers based on their income level, and matches job hunters with roles.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://www.cdss.ca.gov/county-offices\">Find your local social services office in this statewide list.\u003c/a>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cb>Don’t feel weird about claiming the benefits you’re owed\u003c/b>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>When it comes to claiming benefits after a layoff, Ellison wants to remind you that “we all pay for this through our taxes.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s great that if you don’t need it, it’s there. If you do need it, it’s there, and it should be accessed,” Ellison said. “There’s no shame in any of that.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[aside postID=\"news_11957790,news_11970001,news_11967946,news_11968709\" label=\"COVID Resources and Explainers\"]A lot of people also just don’t know about the benefits they could be eligible for, says Ellison, or assume they won’t qualify.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>He also says that some of the eligible job seekers he and his team work with in San Francisco might fear coming forward to apply if a member of their family is undocumented, because they think it will cause them problems. “We don’t get involved in any of that,” said Ellison. “They should never fear that situation.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cb>Try to be patient with how long the application process could take\u003c/b>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Ellison says he and his team “try not to ask a client for documents that we know we already have in the system” — but concedes that sometimes, this process will feel like providing endless documentation. The benefits you’re applying for can be a mix of federal and state funds, so unfortunately “it’s not just as simple as coming in and saying, ‘Hi, I’m Bart, could you sign me up?,’” said Ellison.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The more you can follow through with any documentation requests, hopefully the faster and smoother your application process will go. “And if you need more time or need help gathering stuff, that is what the eligibility staff are there for,” said Ellison. “They are there to \u003ci>help \u003c/i>you find some of these things. So you just need to kind of be your own advocate, and speak up.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cul>\n\u003cli>\u003cstrong>Read more layoff advice in our \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/what-to-do-after-a-layoff\">What to Do After a Layoff \u003c/a>series\u003c/strong>\u003c/li>\n\u003c/ul>\n\u003ch2>\u003ca id=\"unemploymentbenefits\">\u003c/a>Step 1: Apply for unemployment benefits\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>If you’ve been laid off, \u003ca href=\"https://edd.ca.gov/en/unemployment/apply/\">apply for unemployment insurance\u003c/a> (UI, also known just as “unemployment”) from the California Employment Development Department (EDD) as soon as you can. Not only could it take at least three weeks to receive any benefits payments from a successful claim, but your claim begins when you first apply for it — not the day you lose your job. So time is of the essence.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cb>Who can claim unemployment benefits?\u003c/b>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>If you’re reading this and you \u003ci>chose\u003c/i> to leave your job, you usually aren’t eligible to claim unemployment. The exception to this is if you quit your job for what EDD calls “good cause,” which can include unsafe working conditions or a doctor’s advice. Whether or not you’re eligible to still claim UI in this situation will be determined by a phone interview with an EDD representative.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>When applying for UI, you’ll have to show EDD that you have earned enough wages during the base period of 12 months, are totally or partially unemployed, are “unemployed through no fault of your own,” are physically able to work, are available for work and are ready and willing to accept work immediately.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>EDD will also ask you to show that you are “in satisfactory immigration status and authorized to work in the United States” not only now, but when you were earning the wages you’re using to establish your claim. EDD also warns that it will verify your immigration status and work authorization through the Department of Homeland Security.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>You can \u003ca href=\"https://edd.ca.gov/en/unemployment/UI-Calculator/\">calculate the amount of unemployment benefits you can receive using this tool\u003c/a>. Remember that the amount of unemployment you’ll receive is based on your wages over the last 18 months, calculated by EDD from a base period of 12 months within that time — and if you didn’t earn any wages during that period, you won’t qualify for unemployment benefits.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://edd.ca.gov/en/unemployment/FAQ_-_Eligibility/\">See the EDD’s FAQ on who’s eligible to claim unemployment insurance.\u003c/a>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cb>Gather your application information\u003c/b>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>During your online application for UI, you’ll be asked to submit a lot of information — and it’s easiest to have all that gathered and ready, rather than trying to track it down in the middle of the process.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In addition to your basic identity information, you’ll need:\u003c/p>\n\u003cul>\n\u003cli>Your Social Security number\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>Your employment authorization information, if you’re not a U.S. citizen\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>A photo ID like a passport or driver’s license (for your ID.me account — more below)\u003c/li>\n\u003c/ul>\n\u003cp>You’ll also need to provide your employment history for the last 18 months, which will include:\u003c/p>\n\u003cul>\n\u003cli>The names of your previous employers\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>Their addresses\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>Their phone numbers\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>The reason each job ended\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>Your gross (total) wages earned\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>Hours worked per week\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>Hourly rate of pay\u003c/li>\n\u003c/ul>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11946480\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 2560px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-11946480 size-full\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/04/GettyImages-1400799758-scaled.jpg\" alt=\"A woman sits at her kitchen table and sifts through documents, looking concerned. Next to her is her opened laptop.\" width=\"2560\" height=\"1708\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/04/GettyImages-1400799758-scaled.jpg 2560w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/04/GettyImages-1400799758-800x534.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/04/GettyImages-1400799758-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/04/GettyImages-1400799758-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/04/GettyImages-1400799758-1536x1025.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/04/GettyImages-1400799758-2048x1366.jpg 2048w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/04/GettyImages-1400799758-1920x1281.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2560px) 100vw, 2560px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">During your online application for UI, you’ll be asked to submit a lot of information — and it’s easiest to have all that gathered and ready, rather than trying to track it down in the middle of the process. \u003ccite>(MoMo Productions/Getty Images)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>\u003cb>Make the online accounts you’ll need to apply \u003c/b>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>To apply for UI for the first time, you’ll need to \u003ca href=\"https://portal.edd.ca.gov/WebApp/Registration\">create a new Benefit Programs Online account\u003c/a>, to enable you to log in and manage your UI claim. (You may already have one of these accounts if you’ve previously applied for UI, disability insurance or paid family leave — in that case, use the same one.)\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>When you give an email address as part of your Benefit Programs Online application, make sure you check for any emails from EDD. When you get an email with a link to complete your registration, make sure you click that link within 48 hours of receiving it — otherwise, you’ll have to start the registration process all over again.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>When you’ve created your Benefit Programs Online account, \u003ca href=\"https://edd.ca.gov/en/unemployment/ui_online/\">you’ll then register for UI Online\u003c/a>, which is the part of EDD’s online services that allows you to claim and manage your unemployment benefits. Keep reading for how to file your first UI claim.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>You’ll \u003ci>also\u003c/i> need to \u003ca href=\"https://help.id.me/hc/en-us/articles/202673924-Creating-your-ID-me-account\">have an account with ID.me\u003c/a>, the identity verification EDD uses to make sure you’re really you when you’re claiming benefits. You can create your ID.me account before you create your Benefit Programs Online account, or when prompted during the process of creating it. If you’re creating your ID.me account beforehand, just make sure you keep the login details on hand so that you can sign into ID.me when prompted.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>You might consider watching the \u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=moJ1mokMRgc\">EDD’s short instructional video on YouTube about creating these accounts and filing your first UI claim\u003c/a>, so you know what to expect during the process.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cb>File your new UI claim\u003c/b>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>One big thing: To start using UI Online, you’ll be asked for your “EDD Customer Account Number.” This is a number that’s unique to you, that you can also give instead of your Social Security number on the phone when speaking with an EDD representative. You should receive this number at the preferred email address you gave to EDD — in which case you can start using that EDD Customer Account Number immediately to register for UI Online. It’s also possible to \u003ca href=\"https://edd.ca.gov/en/unemployment/create-account/\">receive this number via mail “10 days after you file your claim,” says EDD\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>To file a new claim, \u003ca href=\"https://portal.edd.ca.gov/WebApp/Login?resource_url=https:%2F%2Fportal.edd.ca.gov%2FWebApp%2FHome\">log into your Benefit Programs Online account\u003c/a>, and under “UI Online” select “File New Claim.” Remember you’ll also be asked to briefly sign in to your ID.me account to verify your identity.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>You can’t apply with UI Online 24/7, unfortunately — \u003ca href=\"https://edd.ca.gov/en/unemployment/ui_online/\">the site has hours of operation\u003c/a> (located on the File and Manage Account tab), which EDD says are currently (all times Pacific Standard Time):\u003c/p>\n\u003cul>\n\u003cli>Sunday: 5 a.m.–8:30 p.m.\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>Monday: 4 a.m.–10 p.m.\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>Tuesday–Friday: 2 a.m.–10 p.m.\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>Saturday: 2 a.m.–8 p.m.\u003c/li>\n\u003c/ul>\n\u003cp>If you need to pause during the UI Online application process, you can hit “Save as draft” to save your application to return to later — unless it’s \u003ci>after \u003c/i>8 p.m. on the Saturday of the week you’ve started the application. If it’s after 8 p.m. on Saturday, or you’re doing this on a Sunday, you won’t be able to save your application, and you will have to start it all over again if you exit.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>If you’re having issues with UI Online, \u003ca href=\"https://edd.ca.gov/en/unemployment/ui_online/\">EDD recommends that you call their help line\u003c/a> at (833) 978-2511 and select option 1 after the introduction, available 8 a.m.–5 p.m., Monday through Friday. EDD says that Monday morning before 10 a.m. is their busiest call time.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cb>Getting — and keeping — your unemployment benefits\u003c/b>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Once your application is complete, be aware of \u003ca href=\"https://edd.ca.gov/en/unemployment/After_You_Filed/\">the next steps and further information that EDD will ask of you\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>EDD says that \u003ca href=\"https://edd.ca.gov/en/unemployment/After_You_Filed/\">it “takes at least three weeks to process a claim\u003c/a> for unemployment benefits and issue payment to most eligible workers.” You’ll receive a debit card in the mail, which you can activate and then use to access your payments. If you have an old debit card from a previous UI claim, you can still use that one unless it’s expired (in which case you’ll be sent a new one).\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>To keep receiving UI after you first apply, you’ll have to certify for your unemployment benefits again every two weeks to continue receiving payments. You can do this online, by phone or through the mail, but EDD says you’ll get your payments faster if you certify online — and you’ll also get email reminders this way.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>As part of this certification process every two weeks, you’ll have to \u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3t_RgeoPH_g\">attest that you’re actively seeking employment\u003c/a>. This requirement was paused during the pandemic, but has since been reinstated. You’ll also need to \u003ca href=\"https://edd.ca.gov/en/jobs_and_training/Caljobs/\">register for CalJOBS and post your resume to the site\u003c/a> to keep receiving your UI benefits.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>If you start doing any work again after losing your job, it’s very important that you report those earnings when you certify for your UI benefits — because those wages have to be deducted from your unemployment benefits. \u003ca href=\"https://edd.ca.gov/en/unemployment/FAQ-claims/#:~:text=Can%20I%20still%20collect%20benefits,deducted%20from%20your%20unemployment%20payments.\">Read more on how EDD will adjust your UI if you start earning money again while claiming unemployment benefits.\u003c/a>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And if you’re lucky enough to find a new full-time job, EDD is clear: “If you return to work full time, you will no longer be eligible for unemployment benefits.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://edd.ca.gov/en/unemployment/certify/\">See EDD’s FAQ on certifying your UI claim every two weeks.\u003c/a>\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>\u003ca id=\"healthinsurance\">\u003c/a>Step 2: Address your health insurance\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>If your health insurance was tied to your employment, you need to act swiftly to ensure you’ll still have access to health care after your job ends. The option that’s best for you after your employment ends will depend primarily on how much income your household will now be receiving after you stop working.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Remember that if you’ve applied for unemployment benefits, \u003ca href=\"https://www.healthcare.gov/unemployed/\">you’ll need to declare that unemployment compensation as income\u003c/a> when applying for health insurance plans. \u003ca href=\"https://www.healthcare.gov/income-and-household-information/income/\">Get advice on how to estimate your income on your application.\u003c/a>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cb>First, check with your employer on when your health benefits will \u003ci>actually\u003c/i> end.\u003c/b>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Sometimes a severance package will offer a holdover of benefits, advises the San Francisco’s Human Services Agency’s Bart Ellison. Ask very specific questions of your human resources team, if you have one, about when the last day of your health care will be.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cb>See if you can go on a family member’s health care.\u003c/b>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Losing your health care because of a job loss will likely qualify as a special enrollment period for joining a family member’s plan, if eligible.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>If you have a domestic partner, you may be eligible to join their plan. If you’re under 26 years old, \u003ca href=\"https://www.healthcare.gov/young-adults/children-under-26/\">you may be able to join a parent’s plan\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11945872\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 1920px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-11945872 size-full\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/04/pexels-cottonbro-studio-4778412.jpg\" alt=\"A person with medium-toned skin sits at a wooden table writing on a notepad, surrounded by books. They are wearing a gray t-shirt and have tattooed forearms. We can't see their face.\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1280\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/04/pexels-cottonbro-studio-4778412.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/04/pexels-cottonbro-studio-4778412-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/04/pexels-cottonbro-studio-4778412-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/04/pexels-cottonbro-studio-4778412-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/04/pexels-cottonbro-studio-4778412-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Applying for benefits you’re entitled to can be a time-consuming process. \u003ccite>(cottonbro studio/Pexels)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>\u003cb>Medi-Cal\u003c/b>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Medi-Cal is California’s version of Medicaid, which offers health care to lower-income folks throughout the state. Eligibility is assessed by your household income, and for many people who qualify, there is no cost of getting health care through Medi-Cal.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Laws passed in the last few years in California mean that \u003ca href=\"https://www.dhcs.ca.gov/services/medi-cal/eligibility/Pages/youngadultexp.aspx\">undocumented people age 25 or under\u003c/a> and also \u003ca href=\"https://www.dhcs.ca.gov/services/medi-cal/eligibility/Pages/OlderAdultExpansion.aspx\">undocumented adults age 50 and over\u003c/a> are now eligible to receive Medi-Cal, too.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Unlike Covered California, \u003ca href=\"https://www.healthcare.gov/unemployed/\">Medi-Cal has no limited enrollment period\u003c/a> — you can sign up at any time of year if eligible, including if you’ve lost your job. If your children previously were getting health care through your employer’s plan, \u003ca href=\"https://www.insurekidsnow.gov/coverage/ca/index.html\">Medi-Cal — or the Children’s Health Insurance Program — may be able to cover them now\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://www.dhcs.ca.gov/services/medi-cal/eligibility/Pages/Medi-CalFAQs2014a.aspx#1\">See the state’s FAQ about Medi-Cal.\u003c/a> Medi-Cal and Covered California use the same application portal at \u003ca href=\"https://www.coveredca.com/apply/\">coveredca.com/apply\u003c/a>. Fill out your details, and the site will tell you whether your household income makes you eligible for Medi-Cal or whether you have to choose a private plan from Covered California.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cb>Covered California\u003c/b>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Covered California is the state’s marketplace that offers private health insurance plans. Depending on your household income, you may qualify for a free or low-cost health plan through Covered California — or you may be eligible to receive financial help through Covered California that could help cover the costs of your premiums and co-pays. As with Medi-Cal, your household income is going to determine what you’re eligible for.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Leaving your job for any reason and subsequently \u003ca href=\"https://www.healthcare.gov/unemployed/\">losing your job-based health coverage qualifies for a special enrollment period\u003c/a> for signing up for a marketplace health plan. Usually, you’ll get 60 days from the day you lose your coverage to sign up for a health plan.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://www.dhcs.ca.gov/services/medi-cal/eligibility/Pages/Medi-CalFAQs2014c.aspx#1\">See the state’s FAQ about Covered California.\u003c/a> Remember, Covered California uses the same application portal as Medi-Cal at \u003ca href=\"https://www.coveredca.com/apply/\">coveredca.com/apply\u003c/a>. Fill out your details, and the site will tell you whether your household income makes you eligible for Medi-Cal or whether you have to choose a private plan from Covered California.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cb>COBRA\u003c/b>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>COBRA stands for the federal Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act — and it’s a way of temporarily keeping health care after you leave a job. Instead of opting to sign up for Medi-Cal or a private health insurance plan through Covered California, you can choose so-called “continuation coverage” of your existing health care plan under COBRA, for a certain period of time.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://www.cms.gov/CCIIO/Programs-and-Initiatives/Other-Insurance-Protections/cobra_qna\">Health care through COBRA can be applied retroactively\u003c/a>, if you’re unsure about electing it straightaway. The catch: COBRA is expensive, because it’s the health plan your employer was previously paying part or all of — and now, you’re paying all the costs yourself.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cb>Getting back onto health insurance taking a while? Know where your nearest community health center is.\u003c/b>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>If you aren’t eligible for coverage through Medi-Cal, but signing up for another health plan is proving challenging right now, you can get low-cost health care at a nearby community health center. Make sure you know where your nearest one is, in case you need access to health care quickly. You can \u003ca href=\"https://findahealthcenter.hrsa.gov/\">use this map to find the closest community health center near you\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cb>More resources on finding health care after losing your job:\u003c/b>\u003c/p>\n\u003cul>\n\u003cli>“\u003ca href=\"https://www.coveredca.com/marketing-blog/health-insurance-for-the-unemployed-from-cobra-to-medi-cal/\">Health Insurance for the Unemployed, from COBRA to Medi-Cal\u003c/a>” (from coveredca.com)\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>“\u003ca href=\"https://www.healthcare.gov/unemployed/\">Health coverage options if you’re unemployed\u003c/a>” (from healthcare.gov)\u003c/li>\n\u003c/ul>\n\u003ch2>\u003ca id=\"otherbenefits\">\u003c/a>Step 3: Don’t forget about other benefits you could be entitled to\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>The quickest way to see what benefits you might be eligible for now is to \u003ca href=\"https://benefitscal.com/ApplyForBenefits/ABOVR\">do one application through the state’s BenefitsCal portal\u003c/a>. This site will review your information and tell you what you may qualify for, including Medi-Cal.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The state says this application will take you between 30 minutes and an hour, and if you make an account you can save your progress and return to the application later, rather than having to start again. One catch: Not all counties in California are using this portal yet. \u003ca href=\"https://benefitscal.com/ApplyForBenefits/ABOVR\">Select your county from the drop-down menu\u003c/a> to see whether you have to use another site — \u003ca href=\"https://www.mybenefitscalwin.org/\">mybenefitscalwin.org\u003c/a> — instead.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The other benefits you could be entitled to may include:\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cb>CalFresh (SNAP)\u003c/b>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>CalFresh is the state’s version of the federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), the food benefits program also known as “food stamps.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[aside postID=\"news_11943420\" hero=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/GettyImages-1144627849-1020x680.jpg\"]According to the state’s data from March 2023, over 3 million households use these funds to ensure they have access to food. You can \u003ca href=\"https://benefitscal.com/ApplyForBenefits/ABOVR\">apply through benefitscal.com\u003c/a>, which will also show you all other benefits you’re entitled to, or \u003ca href=\"https://www.getcalfresh.org/\">go direct through getcalfresh.org\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cb>CalWORKs (California Work Opportunity and Responsibility to Kids)\u003c/b>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>If you have at least one child in your home, CalWORKs is a public assistance program that offers cash aid and services to eligible families. \u003ca href=\"https://benefitscal.com/\">See if your family is eligible to receive CalWORKs at benefitscal.com\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cb>WIC (Women, Infants and Children Supplemental Nutrition Program)\u003c/b>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>WIC provides food assistance to lower-income families who have young children or are expecting a new child. Like CalFresh, it’s federally funded, and you can receive WIC benefits on top of your CalFresh benefits.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The program is income-based, and is available to pregnant people, plus new parents and grandparents of young children.\u003ca href=\"https://myfamily.wic.ca.gov/Home/HowCanIGetWIC#howToGetWIC\"> See whether you’re eligible for WIC and apply online.\u003c/a>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Make sure to read the rest of our KQED guides about other steps you can take after a layoff to better support yourself and those who depend on you:\u003c/p>\n\u003cul>\n\u003cli>\u003cstrong>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11949801/layoffs-how-to-find-a-new-job-jobhunting-tips\">The Best Ways to Find a New Job, According to an Expert\u003c/a>\u003c/strong>\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>\u003cstrong>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11949674/layoffs-mental-health-lost-job-self-care\">How to Prioritize Your Mental Health After Losing Your Job, From Telling Family to Self-Care\u003c/a>\u003c/strong>\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>\u003cstrong>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11948895/layoffs-how-to-save-more-money-after-losing-your-job\">How to Save More Money After Losing Your Job\u003c/a>\u003c/strong>\u003c/li>\n\u003c/ul>\n\u003ch2>\u003ca id=\"tellus\">\u003c/a>Tell us: What else do you need information about?\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>At KQED News, we know that it can sometimes be hard to track down the answers to navigate life in the Bay Area. We’ve published \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/coronavirus-resources-and-explainers\">clear, practical explainers and guides about COVID\u003c/a>, \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11936674/how-to-prepare-for-this-weeks-atmospheric-river-storm-sandbags-emergency-kits-and-more\">how to cope with intense winter weather\u003c/a> and \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11821950/how-to-safely-attend-a-protest-in-the-bay-area\">how to exercise your right to protest safely\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>So tell us: What do you need to know more about? Tell us, and you could see your question answered online or on social media. What you submit will make our reporting stronger, and help us decide what to cover here on our site, and on KQED Public Radio, too.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[hearken id=\"10483\" src=\"https://modules.wearehearken.com/kqed/embed/10483.js\"]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>This story was originally published on May 19, 2023\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad floatright]\u003c/p>\n",
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"excerpt": "Knowing what to do when you get laid off can feel daunting — especially if losing your job came as a shock. Check out our list of the initial steps to take after a layoff, to ensure you’re in as secure a place as possible.",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>\u003cem>This guide is part of the KQED News series \u003cstrong>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/what-to-do-after-a-layoff\">What to Do After a Layoff.\u003c/a>\u003c/strong>\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Knowing what to do when you get laid off can feel like a daunting prospect — especially if losing your job came as a total shock.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>We’ve compiled a list of the initial steps to take after a layoff, to ensure you’re in as secure a place as possible. Jump straight to:\u003c/p>\n\u003cul>\n\u003cli>\u003cstrong>\u003ca href=\"#unemploymentbenefits\">Applying for unemployment benefits\u003c/a>\u003c/strong>\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>\u003cstrong>\u003ca href=\"#healthinsurance\">Keeping your health insurance\u003c/a>\u003c/strong>\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>\u003cstrong>\u003ca href=\"#otherbenefits\">Other benefits you might not know you’re eligible for\u003c/a>\u003c/strong>\u003c/li>\n\u003c/ul>\n\u003cp>… Or keep reading. As with the instructions for assembling furniture, you might find it helpful to read all this advice start to finish before you embark on these applications — to be prepared for any bumps you might encounter.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Three tips to making applying for benefits after a layoff easier\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>\u003cb>Your local government may have staff to help you do this\u003c/b>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Many cities and counties have their own offices, staff or programs specifically designed for people in your situation right now — which often have physical offices you can visit, or hotlines to call to ask a person your questions. These kinds of local resources can be particularly helpful in navigating the various benefits you could be entitled to, and aiding in the application processes.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Some offices, like the Department of Benefits and Family Support within \u003ca href=\"https://www.sfhsa.org/\">San Francisco’s Human Services Agency (SFHSA)\u003c/a>, can take your information in one central application and apply for those benefits on your behalf.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Having the help of a city staffer trained in these applications could save you a lot of time and stress, says Bart Ellison, program manager at SFHSA’s Workforce Development Division — not just because the process is streamlined, but because you’ll be able to ask these folks questions either in person or over the phone. It’s their job to help you — let them do it.\u003c/p>\n\u003cul>\n\u003cli>\u003cstrong>\u003ca href=\"#tellus\">Tell us: What else do you need information about right now?\u003c/a>\u003c/strong>\u003c/li>\n\u003c/ul>\n\u003cp>Your city or county may also have a program to help you find new employment, like \u003ca href=\"https://www.sfhsa.org/services/jobs/jobsnow\">SFHSA’s free JobsNOW! program\u003c/a>, which is open to San Francisco job seekers based on their income level, and matches job hunters with roles.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://www.cdss.ca.gov/county-offices\">Find your local social services office in this statewide list.\u003c/a>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cb>Don’t feel weird about claiming the benefits you’re owed\u003c/b>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>When it comes to claiming benefits after a layoff, Ellison wants to remind you that “we all pay for this through our taxes.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s great that if you don’t need it, it’s there. If you do need it, it’s there, and it should be accessed,” Ellison said. “There’s no shame in any of that.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>A lot of people also just don’t know about the benefits they could be eligible for, says Ellison, or assume they won’t qualify.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>He also says that some of the eligible job seekers he and his team work with in San Francisco might fear coming forward to apply if a member of their family is undocumented, because they think it will cause them problems. “We don’t get involved in any of that,” said Ellison. “They should never fear that situation.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cb>Try to be patient with how long the application process could take\u003c/b>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Ellison says he and his team “try not to ask a client for documents that we know we already have in the system” — but concedes that sometimes, this process will feel like providing endless documentation. The benefits you’re applying for can be a mix of federal and state funds, so unfortunately “it’s not just as simple as coming in and saying, ‘Hi, I’m Bart, could you sign me up?,’” said Ellison.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The more you can follow through with any documentation requests, hopefully the faster and smoother your application process will go. “And if you need more time or need help gathering stuff, that is what the eligibility staff are there for,” said Ellison. “They are there to \u003ci>help \u003c/i>you find some of these things. So you just need to kind of be your own advocate, and speak up.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cul>\n\u003cli>\u003cstrong>Read more layoff advice in our \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/what-to-do-after-a-layoff\">What to Do After a Layoff \u003c/a>series\u003c/strong>\u003c/li>\n\u003c/ul>\n\u003ch2>\u003ca id=\"unemploymentbenefits\">\u003c/a>Step 1: Apply for unemployment benefits\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>If you’ve been laid off, \u003ca href=\"https://edd.ca.gov/en/unemployment/apply/\">apply for unemployment insurance\u003c/a> (UI, also known just as “unemployment”) from the California Employment Development Department (EDD) as soon as you can. Not only could it take at least three weeks to receive any benefits payments from a successful claim, but your claim begins when you first apply for it — not the day you lose your job. So time is of the essence.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cb>Who can claim unemployment benefits?\u003c/b>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>If you’re reading this and you \u003ci>chose\u003c/i> to leave your job, you usually aren’t eligible to claim unemployment. The exception to this is if you quit your job for what EDD calls “good cause,” which can include unsafe working conditions or a doctor’s advice. Whether or not you’re eligible to still claim UI in this situation will be determined by a phone interview with an EDD representative.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>When applying for UI, you’ll have to show EDD that you have earned enough wages during the base period of 12 months, are totally or partially unemployed, are “unemployed through no fault of your own,” are physically able to work, are available for work and are ready and willing to accept work immediately.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>EDD will also ask you to show that you are “in satisfactory immigration status and authorized to work in the United States” not only now, but when you were earning the wages you’re using to establish your claim. EDD also warns that it will verify your immigration status and work authorization through the Department of Homeland Security.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>You can \u003ca href=\"https://edd.ca.gov/en/unemployment/UI-Calculator/\">calculate the amount of unemployment benefits you can receive using this tool\u003c/a>. Remember that the amount of unemployment you’ll receive is based on your wages over the last 18 months, calculated by EDD from a base period of 12 months within that time — and if you didn’t earn any wages during that period, you won’t qualify for unemployment benefits.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://edd.ca.gov/en/unemployment/FAQ_-_Eligibility/\">See the EDD’s FAQ on who’s eligible to claim unemployment insurance.\u003c/a>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cb>Gather your application information\u003c/b>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>During your online application for UI, you’ll be asked to submit a lot of information — and it’s easiest to have all that gathered and ready, rather than trying to track it down in the middle of the process.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In addition to your basic identity information, you’ll need:\u003c/p>\n\u003cul>\n\u003cli>Your Social Security number\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>Your employment authorization information, if you’re not a U.S. citizen\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>A photo ID like a passport or driver’s license (for your ID.me account — more below)\u003c/li>\n\u003c/ul>\n\u003cp>You’ll also need to provide your employment history for the last 18 months, which will include:\u003c/p>\n\u003cul>\n\u003cli>The names of your previous employers\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>Their addresses\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>Their phone numbers\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>The reason each job ended\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>Your gross (total) wages earned\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>Hours worked per week\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>Hourly rate of pay\u003c/li>\n\u003c/ul>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11946480\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 2560px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-11946480 size-full\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/04/GettyImages-1400799758-scaled.jpg\" alt=\"A woman sits at her kitchen table and sifts through documents, looking concerned. Next to her is her opened laptop.\" width=\"2560\" height=\"1708\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/04/GettyImages-1400799758-scaled.jpg 2560w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/04/GettyImages-1400799758-800x534.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/04/GettyImages-1400799758-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/04/GettyImages-1400799758-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/04/GettyImages-1400799758-1536x1025.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/04/GettyImages-1400799758-2048x1366.jpg 2048w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/04/GettyImages-1400799758-1920x1281.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2560px) 100vw, 2560px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">During your online application for UI, you’ll be asked to submit a lot of information — and it’s easiest to have all that gathered and ready, rather than trying to track it down in the middle of the process. \u003ccite>(MoMo Productions/Getty Images)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>\u003cb>Make the online accounts you’ll need to apply \u003c/b>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>To apply for UI for the first time, you’ll need to \u003ca href=\"https://portal.edd.ca.gov/WebApp/Registration\">create a new Benefit Programs Online account\u003c/a>, to enable you to log in and manage your UI claim. (You may already have one of these accounts if you’ve previously applied for UI, disability insurance or paid family leave — in that case, use the same one.)\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>When you give an email address as part of your Benefit Programs Online application, make sure you check for any emails from EDD. When you get an email with a link to complete your registration, make sure you click that link within 48 hours of receiving it — otherwise, you’ll have to start the registration process all over again.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>When you’ve created your Benefit Programs Online account, \u003ca href=\"https://edd.ca.gov/en/unemployment/ui_online/\">you’ll then register for UI Online\u003c/a>, which is the part of EDD’s online services that allows you to claim and manage your unemployment benefits. Keep reading for how to file your first UI claim.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>You’ll \u003ci>also\u003c/i> need to \u003ca href=\"https://help.id.me/hc/en-us/articles/202673924-Creating-your-ID-me-account\">have an account with ID.me\u003c/a>, the identity verification EDD uses to make sure you’re really you when you’re claiming benefits. You can create your ID.me account before you create your Benefit Programs Online account, or when prompted during the process of creating it. If you’re creating your ID.me account beforehand, just make sure you keep the login details on hand so that you can sign into ID.me when prompted.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>You might consider watching the \u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=moJ1mokMRgc\">EDD’s short instructional video on YouTube about creating these accounts and filing your first UI claim\u003c/a>, so you know what to expect during the process.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cb>File your new UI claim\u003c/b>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>One big thing: To start using UI Online, you’ll be asked for your “EDD Customer Account Number.” This is a number that’s unique to you, that you can also give instead of your Social Security number on the phone when speaking with an EDD representative. You should receive this number at the preferred email address you gave to EDD — in which case you can start using that EDD Customer Account Number immediately to register for UI Online. It’s also possible to \u003ca href=\"https://edd.ca.gov/en/unemployment/create-account/\">receive this number via mail “10 days after you file your claim,” says EDD\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>To file a new claim, \u003ca href=\"https://portal.edd.ca.gov/WebApp/Login?resource_url=https:%2F%2Fportal.edd.ca.gov%2FWebApp%2FHome\">log into your Benefit Programs Online account\u003c/a>, and under “UI Online” select “File New Claim.” Remember you’ll also be asked to briefly sign in to your ID.me account to verify your identity.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>You can’t apply with UI Online 24/7, unfortunately — \u003ca href=\"https://edd.ca.gov/en/unemployment/ui_online/\">the site has hours of operation\u003c/a> (located on the File and Manage Account tab), which EDD says are currently (all times Pacific Standard Time):\u003c/p>\n\u003cul>\n\u003cli>Sunday: 5 a.m.–8:30 p.m.\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>Monday: 4 a.m.–10 p.m.\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>Tuesday–Friday: 2 a.m.–10 p.m.\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>Saturday: 2 a.m.–8 p.m.\u003c/li>\n\u003c/ul>\n\u003cp>If you need to pause during the UI Online application process, you can hit “Save as draft” to save your application to return to later — unless it’s \u003ci>after \u003c/i>8 p.m. on the Saturday of the week you’ve started the application. If it’s after 8 p.m. on Saturday, or you’re doing this on a Sunday, you won’t be able to save your application, and you will have to start it all over again if you exit.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>If you’re having issues with UI Online, \u003ca href=\"https://edd.ca.gov/en/unemployment/ui_online/\">EDD recommends that you call their help line\u003c/a> at (833) 978-2511 and select option 1 after the introduction, available 8 a.m.–5 p.m., Monday through Friday. EDD says that Monday morning before 10 a.m. is their busiest call time.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cb>Getting — and keeping — your unemployment benefits\u003c/b>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Once your application is complete, be aware of \u003ca href=\"https://edd.ca.gov/en/unemployment/After_You_Filed/\">the next steps and further information that EDD will ask of you\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>EDD says that \u003ca href=\"https://edd.ca.gov/en/unemployment/After_You_Filed/\">it “takes at least three weeks to process a claim\u003c/a> for unemployment benefits and issue payment to most eligible workers.” You’ll receive a debit card in the mail, which you can activate and then use to access your payments. If you have an old debit card from a previous UI claim, you can still use that one unless it’s expired (in which case you’ll be sent a new one).\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>To keep receiving UI after you first apply, you’ll have to certify for your unemployment benefits again every two weeks to continue receiving payments. You can do this online, by phone or through the mail, but EDD says you’ll get your payments faster if you certify online — and you’ll also get email reminders this way.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>As part of this certification process every two weeks, you’ll have to \u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3t_RgeoPH_g\">attest that you’re actively seeking employment\u003c/a>. This requirement was paused during the pandemic, but has since been reinstated. You’ll also need to \u003ca href=\"https://edd.ca.gov/en/jobs_and_training/Caljobs/\">register for CalJOBS and post your resume to the site\u003c/a> to keep receiving your UI benefits.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>If you start doing any work again after losing your job, it’s very important that you report those earnings when you certify for your UI benefits — because those wages have to be deducted from your unemployment benefits. \u003ca href=\"https://edd.ca.gov/en/unemployment/FAQ-claims/#:~:text=Can%20I%20still%20collect%20benefits,deducted%20from%20your%20unemployment%20payments.\">Read more on how EDD will adjust your UI if you start earning money again while claiming unemployment benefits.\u003c/a>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And if you’re lucky enough to find a new full-time job, EDD is clear: “If you return to work full time, you will no longer be eligible for unemployment benefits.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://edd.ca.gov/en/unemployment/certify/\">See EDD’s FAQ on certifying your UI claim every two weeks.\u003c/a>\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>\u003ca id=\"healthinsurance\">\u003c/a>Step 2: Address your health insurance\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>If your health insurance was tied to your employment, you need to act swiftly to ensure you’ll still have access to health care after your job ends. The option that’s best for you after your employment ends will depend primarily on how much income your household will now be receiving after you stop working.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Remember that if you’ve applied for unemployment benefits, \u003ca href=\"https://www.healthcare.gov/unemployed/\">you’ll need to declare that unemployment compensation as income\u003c/a> when applying for health insurance plans. \u003ca href=\"https://www.healthcare.gov/income-and-household-information/income/\">Get advice on how to estimate your income on your application.\u003c/a>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cb>First, check with your employer on when your health benefits will \u003ci>actually\u003c/i> end.\u003c/b>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Sometimes a severance package will offer a holdover of benefits, advises the San Francisco’s Human Services Agency’s Bart Ellison. Ask very specific questions of your human resources team, if you have one, about when the last day of your health care will be.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cb>See if you can go on a family member’s health care.\u003c/b>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Losing your health care because of a job loss will likely qualify as a special enrollment period for joining a family member’s plan, if eligible.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>If you have a domestic partner, you may be eligible to join their plan. If you’re under 26 years old, \u003ca href=\"https://www.healthcare.gov/young-adults/children-under-26/\">you may be able to join a parent’s plan\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11945872\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 1920px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-11945872 size-full\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/04/pexels-cottonbro-studio-4778412.jpg\" alt=\"A person with medium-toned skin sits at a wooden table writing on a notepad, surrounded by books. They are wearing a gray t-shirt and have tattooed forearms. We can't see their face.\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1280\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/04/pexels-cottonbro-studio-4778412.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/04/pexels-cottonbro-studio-4778412-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/04/pexels-cottonbro-studio-4778412-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/04/pexels-cottonbro-studio-4778412-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/04/pexels-cottonbro-studio-4778412-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Applying for benefits you’re entitled to can be a time-consuming process. \u003ccite>(cottonbro studio/Pexels)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>\u003cb>Medi-Cal\u003c/b>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Medi-Cal is California’s version of Medicaid, which offers health care to lower-income folks throughout the state. Eligibility is assessed by your household income, and for many people who qualify, there is no cost of getting health care through Medi-Cal.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Laws passed in the last few years in California mean that \u003ca href=\"https://www.dhcs.ca.gov/services/medi-cal/eligibility/Pages/youngadultexp.aspx\">undocumented people age 25 or under\u003c/a> and also \u003ca href=\"https://www.dhcs.ca.gov/services/medi-cal/eligibility/Pages/OlderAdultExpansion.aspx\">undocumented adults age 50 and over\u003c/a> are now eligible to receive Medi-Cal, too.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Unlike Covered California, \u003ca href=\"https://www.healthcare.gov/unemployed/\">Medi-Cal has no limited enrollment period\u003c/a> — you can sign up at any time of year if eligible, including if you’ve lost your job. If your children previously were getting health care through your employer’s plan, \u003ca href=\"https://www.insurekidsnow.gov/coverage/ca/index.html\">Medi-Cal — or the Children’s Health Insurance Program — may be able to cover them now\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://www.dhcs.ca.gov/services/medi-cal/eligibility/Pages/Medi-CalFAQs2014a.aspx#1\">See the state’s FAQ about Medi-Cal.\u003c/a> Medi-Cal and Covered California use the same application portal at \u003ca href=\"https://www.coveredca.com/apply/\">coveredca.com/apply\u003c/a>. Fill out your details, and the site will tell you whether your household income makes you eligible for Medi-Cal or whether you have to choose a private plan from Covered California.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cb>Covered California\u003c/b>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Covered California is the state’s marketplace that offers private health insurance plans. Depending on your household income, you may qualify for a free or low-cost health plan through Covered California — or you may be eligible to receive financial help through Covered California that could help cover the costs of your premiums and co-pays. As with Medi-Cal, your household income is going to determine what you’re eligible for.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Leaving your job for any reason and subsequently \u003ca href=\"https://www.healthcare.gov/unemployed/\">losing your job-based health coverage qualifies for a special enrollment period\u003c/a> for signing up for a marketplace health plan. Usually, you’ll get 60 days from the day you lose your coverage to sign up for a health plan.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://www.dhcs.ca.gov/services/medi-cal/eligibility/Pages/Medi-CalFAQs2014c.aspx#1\">See the state’s FAQ about Covered California.\u003c/a> Remember, Covered California uses the same application portal as Medi-Cal at \u003ca href=\"https://www.coveredca.com/apply/\">coveredca.com/apply\u003c/a>. Fill out your details, and the site will tell you whether your household income makes you eligible for Medi-Cal or whether you have to choose a private plan from Covered California.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cb>COBRA\u003c/b>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>COBRA stands for the federal Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act — and it’s a way of temporarily keeping health care after you leave a job. Instead of opting to sign up for Medi-Cal or a private health insurance plan through Covered California, you can choose so-called “continuation coverage” of your existing health care plan under COBRA, for a certain period of time.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://www.cms.gov/CCIIO/Programs-and-Initiatives/Other-Insurance-Protections/cobra_qna\">Health care through COBRA can be applied retroactively\u003c/a>, if you’re unsure about electing it straightaway. The catch: COBRA is expensive, because it’s the health plan your employer was previously paying part or all of — and now, you’re paying all the costs yourself.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cb>Getting back onto health insurance taking a while? Know where your nearest community health center is.\u003c/b>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>If you aren’t eligible for coverage through Medi-Cal, but signing up for another health plan is proving challenging right now, you can get low-cost health care at a nearby community health center. Make sure you know where your nearest one is, in case you need access to health care quickly. You can \u003ca href=\"https://findahealthcenter.hrsa.gov/\">use this map to find the closest community health center near you\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cb>More resources on finding health care after losing your job:\u003c/b>\u003c/p>\n\u003cul>\n\u003cli>“\u003ca href=\"https://www.coveredca.com/marketing-blog/health-insurance-for-the-unemployed-from-cobra-to-medi-cal/\">Health Insurance for the Unemployed, from COBRA to Medi-Cal\u003c/a>” (from coveredca.com)\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>“\u003ca href=\"https://www.healthcare.gov/unemployed/\">Health coverage options if you’re unemployed\u003c/a>” (from healthcare.gov)\u003c/li>\n\u003c/ul>\n\u003ch2>\u003ca id=\"otherbenefits\">\u003c/a>Step 3: Don’t forget about other benefits you could be entitled to\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>The quickest way to see what benefits you might be eligible for now is to \u003ca href=\"https://benefitscal.com/ApplyForBenefits/ABOVR\">do one application through the state’s BenefitsCal portal\u003c/a>. This site will review your information and tell you what you may qualify for, including Medi-Cal.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The state says this application will take you between 30 minutes and an hour, and if you make an account you can save your progress and return to the application later, rather than having to start again. One catch: Not all counties in California are using this portal yet. \u003ca href=\"https://benefitscal.com/ApplyForBenefits/ABOVR\">Select your county from the drop-down menu\u003c/a> to see whether you have to use another site — \u003ca href=\"https://www.mybenefitscalwin.org/\">mybenefitscalwin.org\u003c/a> — instead.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The other benefits you could be entitled to may include:\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cb>CalFresh (SNAP)\u003c/b>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>CalFresh is the state’s version of the federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), the food benefits program also known as “food stamps.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>According to the state’s data from March 2023, over 3 million households use these funds to ensure they have access to food. You can \u003ca href=\"https://benefitscal.com/ApplyForBenefits/ABOVR\">apply through benefitscal.com\u003c/a>, which will also show you all other benefits you’re entitled to, or \u003ca href=\"https://www.getcalfresh.org/\">go direct through getcalfresh.org\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cb>CalWORKs (California Work Opportunity and Responsibility to Kids)\u003c/b>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>If you have at least one child in your home, CalWORKs is a public assistance program that offers cash aid and services to eligible families. \u003ca href=\"https://benefitscal.com/\">See if your family is eligible to receive CalWORKs at benefitscal.com\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cb>WIC (Women, Infants and Children Supplemental Nutrition Program)\u003c/b>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>WIC provides food assistance to lower-income families who have young children or are expecting a new child. Like CalFresh, it’s federally funded, and you can receive WIC benefits on top of your CalFresh benefits.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The program is income-based, and is available to pregnant people, plus new parents and grandparents of young children.\u003ca href=\"https://myfamily.wic.ca.gov/Home/HowCanIGetWIC#howToGetWIC\"> See whether you’re eligible for WIC and apply online.\u003c/a>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Make sure to read the rest of our KQED guides about other steps you can take after a layoff to better support yourself and those who depend on you:\u003c/p>\n\u003cul>\n\u003cli>\u003cstrong>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11949801/layoffs-how-to-find-a-new-job-jobhunting-tips\">The Best Ways to Find a New Job, According to an Expert\u003c/a>\u003c/strong>\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>\u003cstrong>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11949674/layoffs-mental-health-lost-job-self-care\">How to Prioritize Your Mental Health After Losing Your Job, From Telling Family to Self-Care\u003c/a>\u003c/strong>\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>\u003cstrong>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11948895/layoffs-how-to-save-more-money-after-losing-your-job\">How to Save More Money After Losing Your Job\u003c/a>\u003c/strong>\u003c/li>\n\u003c/ul>\n\u003ch2>\u003ca id=\"tellus\">\u003c/a>Tell us: What else do you need information about?\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>At KQED News, we know that it can sometimes be hard to track down the answers to navigate life in the Bay Area. We’ve published \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/coronavirus-resources-and-explainers\">clear, practical explainers and guides about COVID\u003c/a>, \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11936674/how-to-prepare-for-this-weeks-atmospheric-river-storm-sandbags-emergency-kits-and-more\">how to cope with intense winter weather\u003c/a> and \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11821950/how-to-safely-attend-a-protest-in-the-bay-area\">how to exercise your right to protest safely\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>So tell us: What do you need to know more about? Tell us, and you could see your question answered online or on social media. What you submit will make our reporting stronger, and help us decide what to cover here on our site, and on KQED Public Radio, too.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>This story was originally published on May 19, 2023\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"title": "Inside California’s Billion-Dollar Bet to Overhaul Its Embattled Unemployment System",
"headTitle": "Inside California’s Billion-Dollar Bet to Overhaul Its Embattled Unemployment System | KQED",
"content": "\u003cp>Five years, $1.2 billion. And a new model for government contracting.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>That is what California officials say it will take to overhaul an employment safety net pushed to the brink by record pandemic job losses, widespread fraud and the political panic that followed.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The most sweeping attempt to date to reform California’s Employment Development Department, an effort dubbed “\u003ca href=\"https://edd.ca.gov/en/about_edd/eddnext/\">EDDNext\u003c/a>,” officially started late last year. A roughly 100-person team is leading the rebuild, and is already signing multimillion-dollar contracts for Salesforce and Amazon technology, according to interviews and records requested by CalMatters.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>At the same time, the EDD is quietly making plans to move on from its \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/economy/2020/11/how-bank-of-america-helped-fuel-californias-unemployment-meltdown/?\">turbulent relationship\u003c/a> with longtime unemployment payment contractor Bank of America. Between now and 2025, it will begin rolling out new benefit debit cards and, eventually, a direct-deposit payment option from a different, yet-to-be-named contractor, the agency said in a statement.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Ron Hughes, a former state technology official and consultant who came out of retirement to run EDDNext said his team is prioritizing “the biggest pain points for the public” — online accounts, call centers, identity verification, benefit applications — as the agency tries to turn the page on an era of mass payment delays and widespread fraud.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“EDD did over 200 technology projects during the pandemic. They were basically putting out fires,” Hughes told CalMatters. “EDDNext is really a way of being proactive about it. We want to solve some of these problems instead of just putting Band-Aids on.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But many workers still experiencing payment delays, fraud confusion and jammed phone lines are skeptical — especially since the EDD promised many similar changes after the Great Recession around 2009.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“There’s a longstanding narrative … like, ‘Look, see, this is a program that people just abuse,’” said Jenna Gerry, a senior staff attorney with the National Employment Law Project. “If people are concerned with actual fraud, then I want to look at what solves it: fundamental reform of the system.”[pullquote align=\"right\" size=\"medium\" citation=\"Jennifer Pahlka, political adviser\"]‘Do I know how to wave a magic wand and fix California’s unemployment insurance system? No, I don’t. But I do know that what we’re currently doing doesn’t work and that other states have some approaches that we should be trying out.’[/pullquote]For Jennifer Pahlka, who co-led Gov. Gavin Newsom’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.govops.ca.gov/wp-content/uploads/sites/11/2020/09/Assessment.pdf\">task force\u003c/a> to triage COVID-era problems at the EDD, the challenge ahead is emblematic of difficulties that many government agencies face in adapting to the digital age. In her book “Recoding America,” Pahlka wrote that the EDD, with its patchwork computer systems and 800-page staff training manual, is failing to keep pace, as inequality widens and risks like fraud evolve.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Do I know how to wave a magic wand and fix California’s unemployment insurance system? No, I don’t,” Pahlka said in an interview. “But I do know that what we’re currently doing doesn’t work and that other states have some approaches that we should be trying out.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>EDD Director Nancy Farias has read Pahlka’s book and the many state audits that have dissected the agency’s recurring failures. She’s well aware of the “light switch” trap, where a government agency bets everything on one, years-long tech project, then prays it all works when a switch is flipped. To try to avoid that, she and Hughes decided to break EDDNext into dozens of smaller projects through 2028.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It leaves less room for a big failure,” said Farias, a former labor union executive. “You can have the best IT in the world, but if you don’t change your policies and procedures, it does not matter.”\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>The COVID hangover\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>This past summer, San Diego jewelry maker Phaedra Huebner found herself stuck in a loop that might sound familiar to people who filed for unemployment early in the pandemic.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Huebner, 52, recalls how at 8 a.m. every day, she dialed the EDD right as its call centers opened to ask where her benefits were. She would use a trick she learned on YouTube to bypass pre-recorded messages, punch in her Social Security Number and hope to get in the queue to talk with a real person. She would then redial, up to 67 times a day, bouncing between departments and, more often than not, hanging up without any answers about when she might see the money she needed to make rent.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The twist: Huebner wasn’t actually filing for unemployment but rather for disability. After each day on the phone, she would wrap ice packs around her hands and arms to ease the shooting pain that put her out of work in the first place.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“For six weeks, I should have been resting,” Huebner said in early September. “Instead, I’m in pain with no disability income doing all of my own administrative work.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The EDD’s benefit programs have always been complex and highly individualized. In most cases, people applying for benefits do not encounter significant delays, the agency told CalMatters in a statement. It cited its \u003ca href=\"https://edd.ca.gov/en/about_edd/eddnext/Benefiting-Californians-May-2023/#CustomerSatisfaction\">2022 survey\u003c/a> of several thousand people using its benefit systems, where 69% reported they were “completely or mostly satisfied” with the unemployment application process, and 63% said they were satisfied with the disability process.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11966715\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 1536px\">\u003ca href=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/11/011022-EDD-Sacramento-MG-CM-03-1.jpeg\">\u003cimg decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11966715\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/11/011022-EDD-Sacramento-MG-CM-03-1.jpeg\" alt=\"A woman walks past the Employment Development Department building.\" width=\"1536\" height=\"1024\" srcset=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/11/011022-EDD-Sacramento-MG-CM-03-1.jpeg 1536w, https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/11/011022-EDD-Sacramento-MG-CM-03-1-800x533.jpeg 800w, https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/11/011022-EDD-Sacramento-MG-CM-03-1-1020x680.jpeg 1020w, https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/11/011022-EDD-Sacramento-MG-CM-03-1-160x107.jpeg 160w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1536px) 100vw, 1536px\">\u003c/a>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">The California Employment Development Department offices in Sacramento on Jan. 10, 2022. \u003ccite>(Miguel Gutierrez Jr./CalMatters)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>The problem, workers and attorneys say, is that even a portion of the EDD’s customer base amounts to tens of thousands of people, so when things go wrong, the impacts can be huge.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In January 2022, for instance, the \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/newsletters/whatmatters/2022/01/california-edd-fraud/\">EDD froze\u003c/a> 345,000 disability accounts, including an unknown number of legitimate ones, amid a wave of suspected fraud involving claims tied to fake doctors. Putting stronger safeguards in place is one of the “lessons learned from the pandemic that we should be applying to every program,” former California State Auditor Elaine Howle said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“People saw the [unemployment] program was being defrauded left and right,” Howle said, “and it was like, ‘Shoot, if I can do that, what other programs are out there that I can defraud?’”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Mason Wilder, research manager of the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners, said unemployment and disability programs are just two examples of many public and private sector systems being targeted as online fraud gets easier. It now costs as little as \u003ca href=\"https://gop-waysandmeans.house.gov/five-key-moments-from-oversight-subcommittee-hearing-on-pandemic-fraud/\">25 cents\u003c/a> to buy a bunk Social Security number online, leading to a cycle of large-scale attacks followed by broad fraud crackdowns.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The risk of unsuspecting people getting caught in dragnets is only anticipated to grow, Wilder and other analysts say, as technologies such as artificial intelligence allow scammers to work faster and more easily forge documents. \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/california-divide/2023/01/calfresh-calworks-thefts/\">Benefit debit cards\u003c/a> used by California’s CalFresh food assistance and CalWorks cash aid programs have also been targeted in recent fraud schemes.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It becomes kind of whack-a-mole,” Wilder said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And EDD’s pandemic unemployment problems have certainly not been neatly resolved. As of September, more than \u003ca href=\"https://oui.doleta.gov/unemploy/ui_insurance_appeal.asp\">130,000 California workers\u003c/a> were still fighting long \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/economy/2023/05/california-edd-unemployment-appeals/\">unemployment appeals\u003c/a> cases, waiting an average of 137 days for a hearing with a state administrative judge, according to U.S. Labor Department data analyzed by CalMatters.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The EDD’s data shows that the number of rejected unemployment claims has climbed steadily since the start of the pandemic, to more than \u003ca href=\"https://edd.ca.gov/en/newsroom/facts-and-stats/dashboard/#TotalUnemploymentClaims\">1.9 million claims\u003c/a> rejected from March 2020 through October 2023. The agency said that reflects the success of anti-fraud measures, but advocates see it as evidence that the state also continues to trap legitimate workers. They point to federal data showing that EDD decisions \u003ca href=\"https://oui.doleta.gov/unemploy/ui_appeal_reversal.asp\">are overturned\u003c/a> almost half the time on appeal.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I definitely don’t think anything’s been resolved,” said George Warner, director of the Wage Protection Program at Legal Aid at Work. “A lot of the issues remain the same.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11966710\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 1536px\">\u003ca href=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/11/102623_EDD-Nancy-Farias-MG_CM_05.jpeg\">\u003cimg decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11966710\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/11/102623_EDD-Nancy-Farias-MG_CM_05.jpeg\" alt=\"A woman in a magenta pantsuit sits under a tree outside an office building.\" width=\"1536\" height=\"1024\" srcset=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/11/102623_EDD-Nancy-Farias-MG_CM_05.jpeg 1536w, https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/11/102623_EDD-Nancy-Farias-MG_CM_05-800x533.jpeg 800w, https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/11/102623_EDD-Nancy-Farias-MG_CM_05-1020x680.jpeg 1020w, https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/11/102623_EDD-Nancy-Farias-MG_CM_05-160x107.jpeg 160w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1536px) 100vw, 1536px\">\u003c/a>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Nancy Farias, director of the California Employment Development Department, in front of the agency’s offices in Sacramento on Oct. 26, 2023. \u003ccite>(Miguel Gutierrez Jr./CalMatters)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>The EDD stresses that \u003ca href=\"https://edd.ca.gov/en/newsroom/facts-and-stats/audit-progress/\">it has implemented\u003c/a> changes recommended by the California state auditor, including providing more public data and creating a new plan for future recessions. However, the auditor remains unconvinced that several major issues have been remedied. This past summer, the auditor added the EDD to its list of \u003ca href=\"https://www.bsa.ca.gov/pdfs/reports/2023-601.pdf\">“high-risk” state agencies\u003c/a>, unlocking additional resources for potential future audits. Top concerns were poor customer service, high rates of benefit denials overturned on appeal, and the agency’s inability to tally pandemic fraud, delaying the state’s two most recent annual financial reports.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“EDD’s mismanagement of the [unemployment] program has resulted in a substantial risk of serious detriment to the state and its residents,” the auditor’s latest report concluded.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Farias said that all states face similar challenges, especially when quantifying fraud that is widely varied and, for obvious reasons, difficult to trace.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“There is no definition of what is fraud … and that’s really the biggest problem,” said Farias, who also sits on the board of the National Association of State Workforce Agencies. “There is Nigerian fraud ring fraud — Fraud with a capital ‘F’ — and then there is, you know, Mary Jo Smith down the street that really didn’t understand what the program was.”[aside label=\"related coverage\" tag=\"edd\"]In San Diego, Huebner unexpectedly got an up-close look at how identity verification issues continue to plague the EDD. After she filed for disability, it took six weeks to get her first check. But then she received a letter in the mail addressed to a woman with a different name and employer in Northern California that said her benefits had been discontinued.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>When Huebner tried to call to figure out what was going on, she realized that her YouTube trick to get through on the phone no longer worked, throwing her back into benefit limbo while she recovered from a spinal procedure and waited to see if a new EDD debit card showed up.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“They won’t tell you anything,” Huebner said in late October. “Pain is one thing, but helplessness is totally different.”\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>What’s next for California unemployment reform?\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Before he was hired to fix the state’s pandemic problem child, EDDNext director Hughes was enjoying retirement on his Sierra foothills ranch dotted with cattle, horses and sheep. He put that on hold and went back to work at the EDD at the request of Farias, his former colleague.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Hughes is quick to note that he wasn’t there for the worst of the pandemic issues. He spends a lot of time talking with other state tech executives who can empathize, such as peers at the DMV.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Even from the outside, it wasn’t hard to see what went wrong at the EDD during the pandemic.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“When you roll out a solution, it needs to work. If it doesn’t work and they call the help desk, you need to answer the phone,” Hughes said. “We didn’t do either of those things very well.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In June, his team launched a new online portal called “MyEDD,” which uses Salesforce technology for workers to file and track the status of their benefits. Some users \u003ca href=\"https://kmph.com/news/local/californias-edd-faces-backlash-over-problematic-new-website-users-unable-to-access-benefits\">reported crashes\u003c/a> during the first days of the rollout, but the system eventually stabilized. It will be built out over time, Hughes said, as the agency works through contracts for identity verification and a “claims navigator” to show workers all benefits they are eligible for.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A new call center system using Amazon technology is slated to debut within the year. First for the state’s older disability system at the end of 2023, Hughes said, then for unemployment next summer. The idea is to ultimately go from the five or six systems that EDD agents currently juggle to one system for processing claims.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Under the new system, there is a single pane of glass,” Hughes said. “As soon as they call in, all the information on their claim will come up.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It’s not the first time the EDD has tried to streamline its claims system, parts of which date back to the 1980s. Pahlka, in her book, compares making sense of the patchwork programs to going on an archaeological dig.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11966711\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 1764px\">\u003ca href=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/11/Screen-Shot-2023-11-07-at-3.43.47-PM.png\">\u003cimg decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11966711\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/11/Screen-Shot-2023-11-07-at-3.43.47-PM.png\" alt=\"A line chart showing Deloite's contracts with EDD.\" width=\"1764\" height=\"868\" srcset=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/11/Screen-Shot-2023-11-07-at-3.43.47-PM.png 1764w, https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/11/Screen-Shot-2023-11-07-at-3.43.47-PM-800x394.png 800w, https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/11/Screen-Shot-2023-11-07-at-3.43.47-PM-1020x502.png 1020w, https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/11/Screen-Shot-2023-11-07-at-3.43.47-PM-160x79.png 160w, https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/11/Screen-Shot-2023-11-07-at-3.43.47-PM-1536x756.png 1536w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1764px) 100vw, 1764px\">\u003c/a>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Source: \u003ca href=\"https://edd.ca.gov/en/newsroom/facts-and-stats/dashboard/\">EDD\u003c/a> \u003ccite>(Calmatters)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>After the Great Recession, the state \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/economy/2021/04/california-unemployment-crisis-contracts/\">paid Deloitte\u003c/a> to upgrade several facets of its operation, including part of its claim management systems, in a series of contracts that ballooned to more than $152 million from 2010 to 2018, copies provided to CalMatters show. That system was one of several that \u003ca href=\"https://www.govops.ca.gov/wp-content/uploads/sites/11/2020/09/Assessment.pdf\">state reports\u003c/a> later found buckled during COVID, but Deloitte was then awarded another $118 million as the state doled out emergency pandemic funds, according to the contracts.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The irony, as Pahlka observed in her book, is that the money went to the very vendor “which built the ineffectual systems in the first place.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>U.S. Rep. Katie Porter, a Democrat from Orange County who sits on a U.S. House Oversight Committee that has investigated pandemic unemployment fraud, sighed heavily when asked about the past Deloitte “unemployment modernization” project — her response, she said, to both the contractor in question and the broader lack of oversight on big-budget projects.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Deloitte has an unfortunate track record of not getting it done here,” Porter said. “If we’re going to contract this and spend our dollars with a private company to do this, we have to hold them accountable for delivering.”[pullquote align=\"right\" size=\"medium\" citation=\"Ron Hughes, EDDNext director\"]‘When you roll out a solution, it needs to work. If it doesn’t work and they call the help desk, you need to answer the phone. We didn’t do either of those things very well.’[/pullquote]Deloitte defended its work for the EDD, noting in a statement that “many technology constraints highlighted by California elected officials during the pandemic related to functions in EDD systems that Deloitte was not contracted to maintain.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The company declined to comment on whether it intends to bid on the new EDDNext project.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Hughes said that no vendor is off the table for EDDNext but that past contract performance will be considered for all bidders. This time around, Hughes said, the plan is structured to include more oversight.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s just way too much work for one vendor to do, and so we’ve split that up,” he said. “We’ve got different vendors doing different solutions. We can manage them much more effectively that way.”\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Familiar fights\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Another promise of EDDNext, Farias said, is that workers, advocates, and frontline staff will have more of a say in how the project is built. The agency has also created a new customer experience arm, which outside observers like Pahlka see as a promising development.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Gerry of the National Employment Law Project was among the worker advocates briefly shown a version of the new EDD online portal before it launched. It will require more sustained effort, she said, to ensure that people relying on the system end up with something easier to use.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s hard because, yes, we see certain incremental changes, but these systemic issues are still there,” Gerry said. “Unless there really is a big overhaul within the agency culture and the way they’re approaching this EDDNext project, we’re going to see these problems continue.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The EDD maintains that more visible changes are coming, including a planned redesign of the agency’s 10 most-used forms to cut unnecessary questions, translate them into more languages, and make them easier to understand and access online.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Similar efforts are also underway in many other states, where officials have raised questions about whether the federal government should do more to standardize applications, anti-fraud measures or other elements of the system. Robert Asaro-Angelo, commissioner of the New Jersey Department of Labor and Workforce Development, recently told a U.S. House committee that states and territories that all currently have their own processes could use more guidance to bolster security while ensuring rightful benefits are paid.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We keep talking as if there’s one unemployment system. There’s 53 different systems,” Asaro-Angelo said. “These fraudsters being able to pick and choose — they couldn’t be happier.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In California, concerns about the nuts and bolts of the state’s unemployment program are magnified by a more fundamental concern: the financial quicksand beneath the entire system.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The state \u003ca href=\"https://lao.ca.gov/LAOEconTax/article/Detail/779\">unemployment fund\u003c/a> that pays for benefits is operating in the red, or “structurally insolvent,” as the California Legislative Analyst’s Office put it in a July 2023 report.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Though the state was making progress on paying down its $20 billion-plus pandemic unemployment loan from the federal government, \u003ca href=\"https://edd.ca.gov/siteassets/files/pdf/edduiforecastmay23.pdf\">state forecasts\u003c/a> now show the debt creeping back up, adding urgency to a fight over \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/economy/2023/10/unemployment-insurance-debt/\">whether to change California’s 1980s-era tax system\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Business groups are already pushing Newsom to use other state money to pay down the debt despite California’s current budget deficit. The state has spent more than $680 million in recent years to pay interest on the federal loan.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“California’s vast unemployment insurance system has been under enormous strain since 2020, and employers are paying the price,” the \u003ca href=\"https://advocacy.calchamber.com/2023/08/28/study-shows-employers-paying-price-for-strain-on-unemployment-insurance-system/\">California Chamber of Commerce\u003c/a> argued in an August report.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>From her vantage point at Sacramento’s Center for Workers’ Rights, labor lawyer Daniela Urban has watched cycles like this play out before. When the economy tanks, everyone — stressed-out workers, angry lawmakers, state watchdogs, the governor — wants to know what’s happening at the EDD.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But as people go back to work, the outside interest and funding wane: a collective failure to fix the system before the next time things go south.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad floatright]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Once the watchful eye is gone, I worry that it will be neglected,” Urban said.\u003c/p>\n\n",
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"excerpt": "The Employment Development Department is getting a major rebuild from big-name tech companies as pandemic payment disputes drag on and fraud hits other state benefit systems.",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>Five years, $1.2 billion. And a new model for government contracting.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>That is what California officials say it will take to overhaul an employment safety net pushed to the brink by record pandemic job losses, widespread fraud and the political panic that followed.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The most sweeping attempt to date to reform California’s Employment Development Department, an effort dubbed “\u003ca href=\"https://edd.ca.gov/en/about_edd/eddnext/\">EDDNext\u003c/a>,” officially started late last year. A roughly 100-person team is leading the rebuild, and is already signing multimillion-dollar contracts for Salesforce and Amazon technology, according to interviews and records requested by CalMatters.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>At the same time, the EDD is quietly making plans to move on from its \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/economy/2020/11/how-bank-of-america-helped-fuel-californias-unemployment-meltdown/?\">turbulent relationship\u003c/a> with longtime unemployment payment contractor Bank of America. Between now and 2025, it will begin rolling out new benefit debit cards and, eventually, a direct-deposit payment option from a different, yet-to-be-named contractor, the agency said in a statement.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Ron Hughes, a former state technology official and consultant who came out of retirement to run EDDNext said his team is prioritizing “the biggest pain points for the public” — online accounts, call centers, identity verification, benefit applications — as the agency tries to turn the page on an era of mass payment delays and widespread fraud.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“EDD did over 200 technology projects during the pandemic. They were basically putting out fires,” Hughes told CalMatters. “EDDNext is really a way of being proactive about it. We want to solve some of these problems instead of just putting Band-Aids on.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But many workers still experiencing payment delays, fraud confusion and jammed phone lines are skeptical — especially since the EDD promised many similar changes after the Great Recession around 2009.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“There’s a longstanding narrative … like, ‘Look, see, this is a program that people just abuse,’” said Jenna Gerry, a senior staff attorney with the National Employment Law Project. “If people are concerned with actual fraud, then I want to look at what solves it: fundamental reform of the system.”\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "‘Do I know how to wave a magic wand and fix California’s unemployment insurance system? No, I don’t. But I do know that what we’re currently doing doesn’t work and that other states have some approaches that we should be trying out.’",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>For Jennifer Pahlka, who co-led Gov. Gavin Newsom’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.govops.ca.gov/wp-content/uploads/sites/11/2020/09/Assessment.pdf\">task force\u003c/a> to triage COVID-era problems at the EDD, the challenge ahead is emblematic of difficulties that many government agencies face in adapting to the digital age. In her book “Recoding America,” Pahlka wrote that the EDD, with its patchwork computer systems and 800-page staff training manual, is failing to keep pace, as inequality widens and risks like fraud evolve.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Do I know how to wave a magic wand and fix California’s unemployment insurance system? No, I don’t,” Pahlka said in an interview. “But I do know that what we’re currently doing doesn’t work and that other states have some approaches that we should be trying out.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>EDD Director Nancy Farias has read Pahlka’s book and the many state audits that have dissected the agency’s recurring failures. She’s well aware of the “light switch” trap, where a government agency bets everything on one, years-long tech project, then prays it all works when a switch is flipped. To try to avoid that, she and Hughes decided to break EDDNext into dozens of smaller projects through 2028.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It leaves less room for a big failure,” said Farias, a former labor union executive. “You can have the best IT in the world, but if you don’t change your policies and procedures, it does not matter.”\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>The COVID hangover\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>This past summer, San Diego jewelry maker Phaedra Huebner found herself stuck in a loop that might sound familiar to people who filed for unemployment early in the pandemic.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Huebner, 52, recalls how at 8 a.m. every day, she dialed the EDD right as its call centers opened to ask where her benefits were. She would use a trick she learned on YouTube to bypass pre-recorded messages, punch in her Social Security Number and hope to get in the queue to talk with a real person. She would then redial, up to 67 times a day, bouncing between departments and, more often than not, hanging up without any answers about when she might see the money she needed to make rent.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The twist: Huebner wasn’t actually filing for unemployment but rather for disability. After each day on the phone, she would wrap ice packs around her hands and arms to ease the shooting pain that put her out of work in the first place.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“For six weeks, I should have been resting,” Huebner said in early September. “Instead, I’m in pain with no disability income doing all of my own administrative work.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The EDD’s benefit programs have always been complex and highly individualized. In most cases, people applying for benefits do not encounter significant delays, the agency told CalMatters in a statement. It cited its \u003ca href=\"https://edd.ca.gov/en/about_edd/eddnext/Benefiting-Californians-May-2023/#CustomerSatisfaction\">2022 survey\u003c/a> of several thousand people using its benefit systems, where 69% reported they were “completely or mostly satisfied” with the unemployment application process, and 63% said they were satisfied with the disability process.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11966715\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 1536px\">\u003ca href=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/11/011022-EDD-Sacramento-MG-CM-03-1.jpeg\">\u003cimg decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11966715\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/11/011022-EDD-Sacramento-MG-CM-03-1.jpeg\" alt=\"A woman walks past the Employment Development Department building.\" width=\"1536\" height=\"1024\" srcset=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/11/011022-EDD-Sacramento-MG-CM-03-1.jpeg 1536w, https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/11/011022-EDD-Sacramento-MG-CM-03-1-800x533.jpeg 800w, https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/11/011022-EDD-Sacramento-MG-CM-03-1-1020x680.jpeg 1020w, https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/11/011022-EDD-Sacramento-MG-CM-03-1-160x107.jpeg 160w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1536px) 100vw, 1536px\">\u003c/a>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">The California Employment Development Department offices in Sacramento on Jan. 10, 2022. \u003ccite>(Miguel Gutierrez Jr./CalMatters)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>The problem, workers and attorneys say, is that even a portion of the EDD’s customer base amounts to tens of thousands of people, so when things go wrong, the impacts can be huge.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In January 2022, for instance, the \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/newsletters/whatmatters/2022/01/california-edd-fraud/\">EDD froze\u003c/a> 345,000 disability accounts, including an unknown number of legitimate ones, amid a wave of suspected fraud involving claims tied to fake doctors. Putting stronger safeguards in place is one of the “lessons learned from the pandemic that we should be applying to every program,” former California State Auditor Elaine Howle said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“People saw the [unemployment] program was being defrauded left and right,” Howle said, “and it was like, ‘Shoot, if I can do that, what other programs are out there that I can defraud?’”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Mason Wilder, research manager of the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners, said unemployment and disability programs are just two examples of many public and private sector systems being targeted as online fraud gets easier. It now costs as little as \u003ca href=\"https://gop-waysandmeans.house.gov/five-key-moments-from-oversight-subcommittee-hearing-on-pandemic-fraud/\">25 cents\u003c/a> to buy a bunk Social Security number online, leading to a cycle of large-scale attacks followed by broad fraud crackdowns.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The risk of unsuspecting people getting caught in dragnets is only anticipated to grow, Wilder and other analysts say, as technologies such as artificial intelligence allow scammers to work faster and more easily forge documents. \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/california-divide/2023/01/calfresh-calworks-thefts/\">Benefit debit cards\u003c/a> used by California’s CalFresh food assistance and CalWorks cash aid programs have also been targeted in recent fraud schemes.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It becomes kind of whack-a-mole,” Wilder said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And EDD’s pandemic unemployment problems have certainly not been neatly resolved. As of September, more than \u003ca href=\"https://oui.doleta.gov/unemploy/ui_insurance_appeal.asp\">130,000 California workers\u003c/a> were still fighting long \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/economy/2023/05/california-edd-unemployment-appeals/\">unemployment appeals\u003c/a> cases, waiting an average of 137 days for a hearing with a state administrative judge, according to U.S. Labor Department data analyzed by CalMatters.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The EDD’s data shows that the number of rejected unemployment claims has climbed steadily since the start of the pandemic, to more than \u003ca href=\"https://edd.ca.gov/en/newsroom/facts-and-stats/dashboard/#TotalUnemploymentClaims\">1.9 million claims\u003c/a> rejected from March 2020 through October 2023. The agency said that reflects the success of anti-fraud measures, but advocates see it as evidence that the state also continues to trap legitimate workers. They point to federal data showing that EDD decisions \u003ca href=\"https://oui.doleta.gov/unemploy/ui_appeal_reversal.asp\">are overturned\u003c/a> almost half the time on appeal.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I definitely don’t think anything’s been resolved,” said George Warner, director of the Wage Protection Program at Legal Aid at Work. “A lot of the issues remain the same.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11966710\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 1536px\">\u003ca href=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/11/102623_EDD-Nancy-Farias-MG_CM_05.jpeg\">\u003cimg decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11966710\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/11/102623_EDD-Nancy-Farias-MG_CM_05.jpeg\" alt=\"A woman in a magenta pantsuit sits under a tree outside an office building.\" width=\"1536\" height=\"1024\" srcset=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/11/102623_EDD-Nancy-Farias-MG_CM_05.jpeg 1536w, https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/11/102623_EDD-Nancy-Farias-MG_CM_05-800x533.jpeg 800w, https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/11/102623_EDD-Nancy-Farias-MG_CM_05-1020x680.jpeg 1020w, https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/11/102623_EDD-Nancy-Farias-MG_CM_05-160x107.jpeg 160w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1536px) 100vw, 1536px\">\u003c/a>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Nancy Farias, director of the California Employment Development Department, in front of the agency’s offices in Sacramento on Oct. 26, 2023. \u003ccite>(Miguel Gutierrez Jr./CalMatters)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>The EDD stresses that \u003ca href=\"https://edd.ca.gov/en/newsroom/facts-and-stats/audit-progress/\">it has implemented\u003c/a> changes recommended by the California state auditor, including providing more public data and creating a new plan for future recessions. However, the auditor remains unconvinced that several major issues have been remedied. This past summer, the auditor added the EDD to its list of \u003ca href=\"https://www.bsa.ca.gov/pdfs/reports/2023-601.pdf\">“high-risk” state agencies\u003c/a>, unlocking additional resources for potential future audits. Top concerns were poor customer service, high rates of benefit denials overturned on appeal, and the agency’s inability to tally pandemic fraud, delaying the state’s two most recent annual financial reports.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“EDD’s mismanagement of the [unemployment] program has resulted in a substantial risk of serious detriment to the state and its residents,” the auditor’s latest report concluded.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Farias said that all states face similar challenges, especially when quantifying fraud that is widely varied and, for obvious reasons, difficult to trace.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“There is no definition of what is fraud … and that’s really the biggest problem,” said Farias, who also sits on the board of the National Association of State Workforce Agencies. “There is Nigerian fraud ring fraud — Fraud with a capital ‘F’ — and then there is, you know, Mary Jo Smith down the street that really didn’t understand what the program was.”\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>In San Diego, Huebner unexpectedly got an up-close look at how identity verification issues continue to plague the EDD. After she filed for disability, it took six weeks to get her first check. But then she received a letter in the mail addressed to a woman with a different name and employer in Northern California that said her benefits had been discontinued.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>When Huebner tried to call to figure out what was going on, she realized that her YouTube trick to get through on the phone no longer worked, throwing her back into benefit limbo while she recovered from a spinal procedure and waited to see if a new EDD debit card showed up.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“They won’t tell you anything,” Huebner said in late October. “Pain is one thing, but helplessness is totally different.”\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>What’s next for California unemployment reform?\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Before he was hired to fix the state’s pandemic problem child, EDDNext director Hughes was enjoying retirement on his Sierra foothills ranch dotted with cattle, horses and sheep. He put that on hold and went back to work at the EDD at the request of Farias, his former colleague.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Hughes is quick to note that he wasn’t there for the worst of the pandemic issues. He spends a lot of time talking with other state tech executives who can empathize, such as peers at the DMV.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Even from the outside, it wasn’t hard to see what went wrong at the EDD during the pandemic.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“When you roll out a solution, it needs to work. If it doesn’t work and they call the help desk, you need to answer the phone,” Hughes said. “We didn’t do either of those things very well.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In June, his team launched a new online portal called “MyEDD,” which uses Salesforce technology for workers to file and track the status of their benefits. Some users \u003ca href=\"https://kmph.com/news/local/californias-edd-faces-backlash-over-problematic-new-website-users-unable-to-access-benefits\">reported crashes\u003c/a> during the first days of the rollout, but the system eventually stabilized. It will be built out over time, Hughes said, as the agency works through contracts for identity verification and a “claims navigator” to show workers all benefits they are eligible for.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A new call center system using Amazon technology is slated to debut within the year. First for the state’s older disability system at the end of 2023, Hughes said, then for unemployment next summer. The idea is to ultimately go from the five or six systems that EDD agents currently juggle to one system for processing claims.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Under the new system, there is a single pane of glass,” Hughes said. “As soon as they call in, all the information on their claim will come up.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It’s not the first time the EDD has tried to streamline its claims system, parts of which date back to the 1980s. Pahlka, in her book, compares making sense of the patchwork programs to going on an archaeological dig.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11966711\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 1764px\">\u003ca href=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/11/Screen-Shot-2023-11-07-at-3.43.47-PM.png\">\u003cimg decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11966711\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/11/Screen-Shot-2023-11-07-at-3.43.47-PM.png\" alt=\"A line chart showing Deloite's contracts with EDD.\" width=\"1764\" height=\"868\" srcset=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/11/Screen-Shot-2023-11-07-at-3.43.47-PM.png 1764w, https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/11/Screen-Shot-2023-11-07-at-3.43.47-PM-800x394.png 800w, https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/11/Screen-Shot-2023-11-07-at-3.43.47-PM-1020x502.png 1020w, https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/11/Screen-Shot-2023-11-07-at-3.43.47-PM-160x79.png 160w, https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/11/Screen-Shot-2023-11-07-at-3.43.47-PM-1536x756.png 1536w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1764px) 100vw, 1764px\">\u003c/a>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Source: \u003ca href=\"https://edd.ca.gov/en/newsroom/facts-and-stats/dashboard/\">EDD\u003c/a> \u003ccite>(Calmatters)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>After the Great Recession, the state \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/economy/2021/04/california-unemployment-crisis-contracts/\">paid Deloitte\u003c/a> to upgrade several facets of its operation, including part of its claim management systems, in a series of contracts that ballooned to more than $152 million from 2010 to 2018, copies provided to CalMatters show. That system was one of several that \u003ca href=\"https://www.govops.ca.gov/wp-content/uploads/sites/11/2020/09/Assessment.pdf\">state reports\u003c/a> later found buckled during COVID, but Deloitte was then awarded another $118 million as the state doled out emergency pandemic funds, according to the contracts.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The irony, as Pahlka observed in her book, is that the money went to the very vendor “which built the ineffectual systems in the first place.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>U.S. Rep. Katie Porter, a Democrat from Orange County who sits on a U.S. House Oversight Committee that has investigated pandemic unemployment fraud, sighed heavily when asked about the past Deloitte “unemployment modernization” project — her response, she said, to both the contractor in question and the broader lack of oversight on big-budget projects.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Deloitte has an unfortunate track record of not getting it done here,” Porter said. “If we’re going to contract this and spend our dollars with a private company to do this, we have to hold them accountable for delivering.”\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>Deloitte defended its work for the EDD, noting in a statement that “many technology constraints highlighted by California elected officials during the pandemic related to functions in EDD systems that Deloitte was not contracted to maintain.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The company declined to comment on whether it intends to bid on the new EDDNext project.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Hughes said that no vendor is off the table for EDDNext but that past contract performance will be considered for all bidders. This time around, Hughes said, the plan is structured to include more oversight.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s just way too much work for one vendor to do, and so we’ve split that up,” he said. “We’ve got different vendors doing different solutions. We can manage them much more effectively that way.”\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Familiar fights\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Another promise of EDDNext, Farias said, is that workers, advocates, and frontline staff will have more of a say in how the project is built. The agency has also created a new customer experience arm, which outside observers like Pahlka see as a promising development.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Gerry of the National Employment Law Project was among the worker advocates briefly shown a version of the new EDD online portal before it launched. It will require more sustained effort, she said, to ensure that people relying on the system end up with something easier to use.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s hard because, yes, we see certain incremental changes, but these systemic issues are still there,” Gerry said. “Unless there really is a big overhaul within the agency culture and the way they’re approaching this EDDNext project, we’re going to see these problems continue.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The EDD maintains that more visible changes are coming, including a planned redesign of the agency’s 10 most-used forms to cut unnecessary questions, translate them into more languages, and make them easier to understand and access online.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Similar efforts are also underway in many other states, where officials have raised questions about whether the federal government should do more to standardize applications, anti-fraud measures or other elements of the system. Robert Asaro-Angelo, commissioner of the New Jersey Department of Labor and Workforce Development, recently told a U.S. House committee that states and territories that all currently have their own processes could use more guidance to bolster security while ensuring rightful benefits are paid.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We keep talking as if there’s one unemployment system. There’s 53 different systems,” Asaro-Angelo said. “These fraudsters being able to pick and choose — they couldn’t be happier.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In California, concerns about the nuts and bolts of the state’s unemployment program are magnified by a more fundamental concern: the financial quicksand beneath the entire system.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The state \u003ca href=\"https://lao.ca.gov/LAOEconTax/article/Detail/779\">unemployment fund\u003c/a> that pays for benefits is operating in the red, or “structurally insolvent,” as the California Legislative Analyst’s Office put it in a July 2023 report.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Though the state was making progress on paying down its $20 billion-plus pandemic unemployment loan from the federal government, \u003ca href=\"https://edd.ca.gov/siteassets/files/pdf/edduiforecastmay23.pdf\">state forecasts\u003c/a> now show the debt creeping back up, adding urgency to a fight over \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/economy/2023/10/unemployment-insurance-debt/\">whether to change California’s 1980s-era tax system\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Business groups are already pushing Newsom to use other state money to pay down the debt despite California’s current budget deficit. The state has spent more than $680 million in recent years to pay interest on the federal loan.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“California’s vast unemployment insurance system has been under enormous strain since 2020, and employers are paying the price,” the \u003ca href=\"https://advocacy.calchamber.com/2023/08/28/study-shows-employers-paying-price-for-strain-on-unemployment-insurance-system/\">California Chamber of Commerce\u003c/a> argued in an August report.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>From her vantage point at Sacramento’s Center for Workers’ Rights, labor lawyer Daniela Urban has watched cycles like this play out before. When the economy tanks, everyone — stressed-out workers, angry lawmakers, state watchdogs, the governor — wants to know what’s happening at the EDD.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But as people go back to work, the outside interest and funding wane: a collective failure to fix the system before the next time things go south.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cp>\u003cem>This guide is part of the KQED News series \u003cstrong>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/what-to-do-after-a-layoff\">What to Do After a Layoff.\u003c/a>\u003c/strong>\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>If you’ve just been laid off, how can you embark on finding a new job — especially if it’s been a while? How fast should you move, and where should you look?\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Along with \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11949192/layoffs-unemployment-benefits-health-insurance-calfresh\">how to apply for unemployment benefits\u003c/a> and \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11948895/layoffs-how-to-save-more-money-after-losing-your-job\">how to save money\u003c/a>, how to find a new job — preferably one you’ll actually enjoy — is top of mind for many people after a layoff. But it’s not always easy.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>So, KQED spoke to \u003ca href=\"https://jobhuntbootcamp.com/\">Bay Area-based career coach Horst Govin\u003c/a>, who runs the job-hunting program Job Hunt Bootcamp, about the most effective, productive ways to find your next job, how to approach updating your résumé and the best methods for reaching out to other people about job opportunities — plus how to retain your peace during what can be an often-frustrating process.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Jump straight to:\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cul>\n\u003cli>\u003ca href=\"#resume\">\u003cstrong>How to tackle your résumé\u003c/strong>\u003c/a>\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>\u003ca href=\"#networks\">\u003cstrong>How to activate your networks (without spamming people)\u003c/strong>\u003c/a>\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>\u003ca href=\"#scrolling\">\u003cstrong>Why endlessly scrolling job listings probably won’t work\u003c/strong>\u003c/a>\u003c/li>\n\u003c/ul>\n\u003ch2>Don’t take it personally\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>If getting laid off has you truly freaked out, Govin says it’s important to know this is a completely natural reaction. “For a lot of people, and especially for people who it’s their first experience being laid off, \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11949674/layoffs-mental-health-lost-job-self-care\">the initial reaction is, ‘Oh, my God, what did I do wrong?\u003c/a> What’s wrong with me? How can I let this happen to myself?’” he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>As hard as it might initially feel, you \u003cem>have\u003c/em> to let go of this feeling to be able to move forward effectively and find that next job, Govin said: “This has nothing to do with you. This is a decision that was made at a much higher level.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>As horrible as a layoff feels, “this is a routine matter in business,” stressed Govin. “It happens all the time, and it happens to a lot of people.” So blaming yourself, or thinking this means you were bad at your job, is just not accurate, he said: “Sometimes businesses grow too quickly. Sometimes businesses don’t plan appropriately.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cul>\n\u003cli>\u003cstrong>\u003ca href=\"#tellus\">Tell us: What else do you need information about right now?\u003c/a>\u003c/strong>\u003c/li>\n\u003c/ul>\n\u003cp>“And in many cases, the decision to lay off is made by somebody who made a mistake prior to the layoff and now is correcting that mistake with the layoff,” said Govin. “Or it’s the remains of a situation that’s out of anyone’s control — like the market.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Realizing this doesn’t bring your job back, of course, or change the fact that other folks kept their jobs and you didn’t. But if you’re able to ground yourself, and truly understand that this wasn’t something you caused, “you can come back to where you are, from a place of security and confidence,” said Govin — and be in a much stronger position to make your next career move.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11949809\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2560px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11949809\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/05/GettyImages-867421140-scaled.jpg\" alt=\"Young businesswoman looks at a computer screen thoughtfully.\" width=\"2560\" height=\"1707\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/05/GettyImages-867421140-scaled.jpg 2560w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/05/GettyImages-867421140-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/05/GettyImages-867421140-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/05/GettyImages-867421140-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/05/GettyImages-867421140-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/05/GettyImages-867421140-2048x1365.jpg 2048w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/05/GettyImages-867421140-1920x1280.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2560px) 100vw, 2560px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">If you can give yourself some time before starting the job search, reflect on where you’ve been and where you want to go next in your career. \u003ccite>(Luis Alvarez/Getty Images)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003ch2>Pause — if you can — and take control of your search\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>When you lose your job, you may feel like you have to start looking for a new one immediately. But if you’re at all able to “just hit the pause button” at this moment, said Govin, you should — and use this as an opportunity to work out where you are, and “do whatever you need to do.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>For some, that might be taking some time to properly deal with the emotional fallout of losing a job. “If you’re having a hard time, take some time and try to reconcile what’s happened,” advised Govin.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>For others, this might be a time to consider the unexpected upsides of what’s happened — even if this situation wasn’t exactly of your own choosing.[pullquote align=\"right\" size=\"medium\" citation=\"Horst Govin, career coach\"]‘If you’ve always been dreaming about pursuing something, either a slight step up or slightly different, now’s the perfect time to do that.’[/pullquote]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“In some cases, a layoff can be a blessing in disguise,” said Govin. “I’ve worked with people who have told me that it was the best thing that could have happened to them, because they realized that they weren’t doing exactly what they wanted to — and this gave them the opportunity, and it gave them a reason to look for something better.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cul>\n\u003cli>\u003cstrong>Read more layoff advice in our \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/what-to-do-after-a-layoff\">What to Do After a Layoff \u003c/a>series\u003c/strong>\u003c/li>\n\u003c/ul>\n\u003cp>If you received a severance package, “consider this a gift,” said Govin. “You’ve got some time, and you can use that time to reflect on where you’ve been, what you’ve been doing, and also to think about where you want to go next.” While Govin says this kind of reflection is important for everyone who’s been affected by a layoff, having received a severance package is going to make this even more possible — because of the extra financial flexibility this could offer you.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Ultimately — even though “you’ve been forced to think about this now,” acknowledged Govin — this could be a moment to decide what next step feels right for you, and what you’d like to happen next in your career. Govin advises asking yourself: “What’s the trajectory that you’re on, and what’s the next best step for you? What makes sense?”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“If you’ve always been dreaming about pursuing something, either a slight step up or slightly different, now’s the perfect time to do that,” he added.\u003cbr>\n[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>\u003ca id=\"resume\">\u003c/a>Don’t stress if your résumé isn’t recently updated\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>You’ve probably heard the career advice that it’s a good idea to always keep your résumé up to date — something that came up several times on \u003ca href=\"https://www.reddit.com/r/bayarea/comments/11rexqm/layoffs_what_do_you_wish_you_knew_what_advice_do/\">our Reddit thread about layoff advice\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But Govin says his personal “résumé philosophy” actually goes against this common advice, to an extent — and that you shouldn’t necessarily feel bad if you’re starting a job hunt with a résumé that’s gathered a little dust. For him, “the reality is, your résumé is going to look different every time you need it — so it’s actually not a bad thing to create your résumé from scratch when you need it.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[aside label='More Guides from KQED' tag='kqed-guides']After you’ve taken time to reflect on your next career move, making a fresh résumé — rather than refreshing an old one — will allow you to “design your résumé and target it towards what you want to do next,” advised Govin. “And it might not be what you’re doing now. It might be slightly different.” This way, he said, “you create it with where you are now, and where you want to go next, as the basis.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>This isn’t to say that keeping your résumé fairly up to date is bad advice, Govin said, but you might find it even more helpful to see it more as keeping “a record of all the things that you’ve done in your career” as an ongoing list, not necessarily in the format of a résumé.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It can just be a simple … bulleted list of all of your accomplishments that you can refer to, and remind yourself of all the things that you’ve accomplished,” he explained. This confidence-boosting approach will also send you into your job hunt with clear objectives, and make you feel like more of an active participant in the process.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Decide whether you can afford to wait for the ‘perfect’ new job — or whether you need to start earning quickly\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Not everyone can afford to take a break from working while they look for the right new full-time opportunity.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>If you’re in this position, and you need to start making money again right now, Govin recommended you work to find \u003cem>something\u003c/em> that lets you do that — “whether it’s a consulting job, contract work or freelance work.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And don’t overthink it: “Find something to close the gap so that you can get income coming in, so you don’t have to worry,” said Govin. “It can be very detrimental in your job hunt if you are constantly worried about when you’re going to get your next job, when the money’s going to start coming back in.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Stay realistic in this situation: Your stop-gap earning opportunity “doesn’t have to be your final job, doesn’t have to be your dream job,” said Govin. It just has to be “something to close the gap, so that then you can focus on finding your full-time job without the stress that comes with being worried about the money.” \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11948895/layoffs-how-to-save-more-money-after-losing-your-job\">Read more about how to save money after a layoff.\u003c/a>\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11949833\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2560px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11949833\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/05/GettyImages-924872486-scaled.jpg\" alt=\"A man wearing construction gear stands in the street, near a work area, and talks to another man that is sitting inside a truck.\" width=\"2560\" height=\"1707\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/05/GettyImages-924872486-scaled.jpg 2560w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/05/GettyImages-924872486-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/05/GettyImages-924872486-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/05/GettyImages-924872486-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/05/GettyImages-924872486-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/05/GettyImages-924872486-2048x1365.jpg 2048w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/05/GettyImages-924872486-1920x1280.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2560px) 100vw, 2560px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">If you’re reaching out to your friends and former colleagues to look for job opportunities, it may be best to contact people individually to explain what you’re looking for. \u003ccite>(Markus Bernhard/Getty Images)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003ch2>\u003ca id=\"networks\">\u003c/a>Activate your networks (without spamming people)\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>This is another piece of common job-hunting advice you might have heard before: Immediately let your friends and professional networks know you’re looking for a new job. But how can you do this in a way that actually works — and doesn’t put the people you know in an uncomfortable position?\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>First, says Govin, don’t reach out to anyone until you’ve done that internal work of establishing what you want your next job to look like. Next, he recommended that instead of “blasting out a message on social media, whether it’s LinkedIn or elsewhere, saying, ‘Hey, I’m looking for a job,’” a more effective way might be to reach out to people individually.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>He recommends that you lead with honesty and clarity in these messages — especially if this is the first time you’re reaching out to people in a while — and tell them:\u003c/p>\n\u003cul>\n\u003cli>You’re on the market for a new job, and are actively seeking new opportunities.\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>What kind of opportunities you’re looking for.\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>You’d love to hear back from them if they know of any opportunities that match.\u003c/li>\n\u003c/ul>\n\u003cp>Get in touch with as many people as you can one-on-one, says Govin — and remember that most of them will \u003cem>want\u003c/em> to be of assistance. “You likely have a lot of friends and former colleagues that are more than happy to help you, and keep an eye out and an ear out for opportunities,” he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Speaking of networks: Form a support group\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>If you were part of a larger layoff, you just became one of many people going through the same situation. “Take advantage of that,” advised Govin. “Use them as support. Use them as part of your community, and help each other out as you’re going through the next step in your career.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Not only is this kind of community key for potentially connecting you with new opportunities, but it can also offer you invaluable \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11949674/layoffs-mental-health-lost-job-self-care\">emotional support and boost your morale\u003c/a> — proving you’re not alone in this. It can also be empowering to give back this kind of support to others in the same situation.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Leaning on a support group of people in the same boat will also relieve some of the pressure from within your personal life, says Govin. “There’s only so much that your family and your friends want to hear about your job hunt,” he said, “so find a group of people who really can relate and who are there to support you and guide you through the process.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11949839\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2560px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11949839\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/05/GettyImages-1084167994-scaled.jpg\" alt=\"Man with beard and glasses looks at his phone screen while sitting next to a desk.\" width=\"2560\" height=\"1709\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/05/GettyImages-1084167994-scaled.jpg 2560w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/05/GettyImages-1084167994-800x534.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/05/GettyImages-1084167994-1020x681.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/05/GettyImages-1084167994-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/05/GettyImages-1084167994-1536x1025.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/05/GettyImages-1084167994-2048x1367.jpg 2048w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/05/GettyImages-1084167994-1920x1281.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2560px) 100vw, 2560px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">‘Treat the job hunt like a marathon, not a sprint,’ said career coach Horst Govin, adding that it’s important to set time aside to do the things that fulfill you. \u003ccite>(10'000 Hours/Getty Images)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003ch2>\u003ca id=\"scrolling\">\u003c/a>Endlessly scrolling job listings online isn’t good for you — or your search\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Govin says he advises his clients \u003cem>against\u003c/em> searching for jobs every single day. While new jobs get posted constantly, “it’s not productive to be spending all of your time poring through posted jobs on job boards or LinkedIn or other sites,” he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Instead, Govin advised that you “dedicate a lot of time once a week to do that.” He suggests Thursdays as a good day for this, in which you can set aside a few hours and review all the new postings that have come online since the previous Thursday. “That way,” he said, “you’re batching all that effort into one time a week,” and containing it to two or three hours.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[pullquote align=\"right\" size=\"medium\" citation=\"Horst Govin, career coach\"]‘Treat the job hunt like a marathon, not a sprint … you really need to preserve your energy and your time.’[/pullquote]Not only can this approach be beneficial to your emotional health — rather than overwhelming you with endlessly scrolling job posts — but it also frees up the rest of your week to focus on other types of job search activities, said Govin. “Responding to job ads is only one way of looking for a job — and in many cases, it’s the least effective, because there are so many other applicants that you’re competing with.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A more “diversified job search strategy” might also encompass “leveraging your network, reaching out to contacts, being very targeted and looking for very specific roles at companies that you’re interested in or working with people that you want to work with,” recommended Govin.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Treat the job hunt like a marathon, not a sprint,” he said. “You really need to preserve your energy and your time.” Treating your job hunt like a job also means fully logging off once you’ve done your part for the day, and doing the things that fulfill you: spending time with loved ones, hobbies, exercise or spending time outdoors.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>This period of job hunting is temporary, and has an end point: when you finally find your next opportunity. But until then, “you have to pace yourself. You have to take time out to do things that will nurture you,” said Govin, adding that you’ll want to “do whatever you can to just keep every other aspect of your life on a positive level.” \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11949674/layoffs-mental-health-lost-job-self-care\">Read more tips for taking care of your mental health during a job search. \u003c/a>\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Finally, keep perspective — the job market is ‘a numbers game’\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>You’re going to get frustrated with applying to jobs you never hear back about, said Govin, and that’s all part of the process. Like many people who have been laid off recently, you’re getting back out there — which means you’re now one of a lot of people on the job market.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Even if you’ve spent a long time polishing your résumé and crafting a killer application, the truth, said Govin, “is when you submit an application, you’re basically dropping an envelope in a black box. And sometimes that black box turns into a black hole — and it’s gone.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>So how do you keep moving forward when it feels like you’re not moving forward in your job search? Just like it’s important to realize that getting laid off wasn’t your fault, you need to also acknowledge that not hearing back from job applications “has nothing to do with you,” said Govin.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[pullquote align=\"right\" size=\"medium\" citation=\"Horst Govin, career coach\"]‘Keep playing the numbers game — until you find the opportunity where \u003cem>you\u003c/em> become the one who gets the job.’[/pullquote]“There might be 500 other people applying for the same job,” he said, meaning that the hiring manager on the other end has “an incredible, Herculean task” to sort through them all. “I wouldn’t want to be in that role, either, because how do you sort through that?” said Govin. “How do you find the one or two or three people who are perfect for that job?”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I always tell my clients: The job hunt is a numbers game,” he said. “For every job out there, if there are a hundred applicants, only one person is going to get the job. And 99 people are not going to get the job. And in most cases, you’re going to be one of the 99 people.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>So as tiring as it feels, he said, “you have to keep playing the numbers game — until you find the opportunity where \u003cem>you\u003c/em> become the one who gets the job.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Make sure to read the rest of our KQED guides about other steps you can take after a layoff to better support yourself and those who depend on you:\u003c/p>\n\u003cul>\n\u003cli>\u003cstrong>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11949674/layoffs-mental-health-lost-job-self-care\">How to Prioritize Your Mental Health After Losing Your Job, From Telling Family to Self-Care\u003c/a>\u003c/strong>\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>\u003cstrong>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11949192/layoffs-unemployment-benefits-health-insurance-calfresh\">From Unemployment Benefits to Health Insurance, the Steps to Take ASAP\u003c/a>\u003c/strong>\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>\u003cstrong>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11948895/layoffs-how-to-save-more-money-after-losing-your-job\">How to Save More Money After Losing Your Job\u003c/a>\u003c/strong>\u003c/li>\n\u003c/ul>\n\u003ch2>\u003ca id=\"tellus\">\u003c/a>Tell us: What else do you need information about?\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>At KQED News, we know that it can sometimes be hard to track down the answers to navigate life in the Bay Area in 2023. We’ve published \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/coronavirus-resources-and-explainers\">clear, helpful explainers and guides about issues like COVID\u003c/a>, \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11936674/how-to-prepare-for-this-weeks-atmospheric-river-storm-sandbags-emergency-kits-and-more\">how to cope with intense winter weather\u003c/a> and \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11821950/how-to-safely-attend-a-protest-in-the-bay-area\">how to exercise your right to protest safely\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>So tell us: What do you need to know more about? Tell us, and you could see your question answered online or on social media. What you submit will make our reporting stronger, and help us decide what to cover here on our site, and on KQED Public Radio, too.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[hearken id=\"10483\" src=\"https://modules.wearehearken.com/kqed/embed/10483.js\"]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad floatright]\u003c/p>\n",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>\u003cem>This guide is part of the KQED News series \u003cstrong>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/what-to-do-after-a-layoff\">What to Do After a Layoff.\u003c/a>\u003c/strong>\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>If you’ve just been laid off, how can you embark on finding a new job — especially if it’s been a while? How fast should you move, and where should you look?\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Along with \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11949192/layoffs-unemployment-benefits-health-insurance-calfresh\">how to apply for unemployment benefits\u003c/a> and \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11948895/layoffs-how-to-save-more-money-after-losing-your-job\">how to save money\u003c/a>, how to find a new job — preferably one you’ll actually enjoy — is top of mind for many people after a layoff. But it’s not always easy.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>So, KQED spoke to \u003ca href=\"https://jobhuntbootcamp.com/\">Bay Area-based career coach Horst Govin\u003c/a>, who runs the job-hunting program Job Hunt Bootcamp, about the most effective, productive ways to find your next job, how to approach updating your résumé and the best methods for reaching out to other people about job opportunities — plus how to retain your peace during what can be an often-frustrating process.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Jump straight to:\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cul>\n\u003cli>\u003ca href=\"#resume\">\u003cstrong>How to tackle your résumé\u003c/strong>\u003c/a>\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>\u003ca href=\"#networks\">\u003cstrong>How to activate your networks (without spamming people)\u003c/strong>\u003c/a>\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>\u003ca href=\"#scrolling\">\u003cstrong>Why endlessly scrolling job listings probably won’t work\u003c/strong>\u003c/a>\u003c/li>\n\u003c/ul>\n\u003ch2>Don’t take it personally\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>If getting laid off has you truly freaked out, Govin says it’s important to know this is a completely natural reaction. “For a lot of people, and especially for people who it’s their first experience being laid off, \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11949674/layoffs-mental-health-lost-job-self-care\">the initial reaction is, ‘Oh, my God, what did I do wrong?\u003c/a> What’s wrong with me? How can I let this happen to myself?’” he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>As hard as it might initially feel, you \u003cem>have\u003c/em> to let go of this feeling to be able to move forward effectively and find that next job, Govin said: “This has nothing to do with you. This is a decision that was made at a much higher level.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>As horrible as a layoff feels, “this is a routine matter in business,” stressed Govin. “It happens all the time, and it happens to a lot of people.” So blaming yourself, or thinking this means you were bad at your job, is just not accurate, he said: “Sometimes businesses grow too quickly. Sometimes businesses don’t plan appropriately.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cul>\n\u003cli>\u003cstrong>\u003ca href=\"#tellus\">Tell us: What else do you need information about right now?\u003c/a>\u003c/strong>\u003c/li>\n\u003c/ul>\n\u003cp>“And in many cases, the decision to lay off is made by somebody who made a mistake prior to the layoff and now is correcting that mistake with the layoff,” said Govin. “Or it’s the remains of a situation that’s out of anyone’s control — like the market.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Realizing this doesn’t bring your job back, of course, or change the fact that other folks kept their jobs and you didn’t. But if you’re able to ground yourself, and truly understand that this wasn’t something you caused, “you can come back to where you are, from a place of security and confidence,” said Govin — and be in a much stronger position to make your next career move.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11949809\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2560px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11949809\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/05/GettyImages-867421140-scaled.jpg\" alt=\"Young businesswoman looks at a computer screen thoughtfully.\" width=\"2560\" height=\"1707\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/05/GettyImages-867421140-scaled.jpg 2560w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/05/GettyImages-867421140-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/05/GettyImages-867421140-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/05/GettyImages-867421140-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/05/GettyImages-867421140-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/05/GettyImages-867421140-2048x1365.jpg 2048w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/05/GettyImages-867421140-1920x1280.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2560px) 100vw, 2560px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">If you can give yourself some time before starting the job search, reflect on where you’ve been and where you want to go next in your career. \u003ccite>(Luis Alvarez/Getty Images)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003ch2>Pause — if you can — and take control of your search\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>When you lose your job, you may feel like you have to start looking for a new one immediately. But if you’re at all able to “just hit the pause button” at this moment, said Govin, you should — and use this as an opportunity to work out where you are, and “do whatever you need to do.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>For some, that might be taking some time to properly deal with the emotional fallout of losing a job. “If you’re having a hard time, take some time and try to reconcile what’s happened,” advised Govin.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>For others, this might be a time to consider the unexpected upsides of what’s happened — even if this situation wasn’t exactly of your own choosing.\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“In some cases, a layoff can be a blessing in disguise,” said Govin. “I’ve worked with people who have told me that it was the best thing that could have happened to them, because they realized that they weren’t doing exactly what they wanted to — and this gave them the opportunity, and it gave them a reason to look for something better.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cul>\n\u003cli>\u003cstrong>Read more layoff advice in our \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/what-to-do-after-a-layoff\">What to Do After a Layoff \u003c/a>series\u003c/strong>\u003c/li>\n\u003c/ul>\n\u003cp>If you received a severance package, “consider this a gift,” said Govin. “You’ve got some time, and you can use that time to reflect on where you’ve been, what you’ve been doing, and also to think about where you want to go next.” While Govin says this kind of reflection is important for everyone who’s been affected by a layoff, having received a severance package is going to make this even more possible — because of the extra financial flexibility this could offer you.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Ultimately — even though “you’ve been forced to think about this now,” acknowledged Govin — this could be a moment to decide what next step feels right for you, and what you’d like to happen next in your career. Govin advises asking yourself: “What’s the trajectory that you’re on, and what’s the next best step for you? What makes sense?”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“If you’ve always been dreaming about pursuing something, either a slight step up or slightly different, now’s the perfect time to do that,” he added.\u003cbr>\n\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>\u003ca id=\"resume\">\u003c/a>Don’t stress if your résumé isn’t recently updated\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>You’ve probably heard the career advice that it’s a good idea to always keep your résumé up to date — something that came up several times on \u003ca href=\"https://www.reddit.com/r/bayarea/comments/11rexqm/layoffs_what_do_you_wish_you_knew_what_advice_do/\">our Reddit thread about layoff advice\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But Govin says his personal “résumé philosophy” actually goes against this common advice, to an extent — and that you shouldn’t necessarily feel bad if you’re starting a job hunt with a résumé that’s gathered a little dust. For him, “the reality is, your résumé is going to look different every time you need it — so it’s actually not a bad thing to create your résumé from scratch when you need it.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>After you’ve taken time to reflect on your next career move, making a fresh résumé — rather than refreshing an old one — will allow you to “design your résumé and target it towards what you want to do next,” advised Govin. “And it might not be what you’re doing now. It might be slightly different.” This way, he said, “you create it with where you are now, and where you want to go next, as the basis.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>This isn’t to say that keeping your résumé fairly up to date is bad advice, Govin said, but you might find it even more helpful to see it more as keeping “a record of all the things that you’ve done in your career” as an ongoing list, not necessarily in the format of a résumé.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It can just be a simple … bulleted list of all of your accomplishments that you can refer to, and remind yourself of all the things that you’ve accomplished,” he explained. This confidence-boosting approach will also send you into your job hunt with clear objectives, and make you feel like more of an active participant in the process.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Decide whether you can afford to wait for the ‘perfect’ new job — or whether you need to start earning quickly\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Not everyone can afford to take a break from working while they look for the right new full-time opportunity.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>If you’re in this position, and you need to start making money again right now, Govin recommended you work to find \u003cem>something\u003c/em> that lets you do that — “whether it’s a consulting job, contract work or freelance work.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And don’t overthink it: “Find something to close the gap so that you can get income coming in, so you don’t have to worry,” said Govin. “It can be very detrimental in your job hunt if you are constantly worried about when you’re going to get your next job, when the money’s going to start coming back in.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Stay realistic in this situation: Your stop-gap earning opportunity “doesn’t have to be your final job, doesn’t have to be your dream job,” said Govin. It just has to be “something to close the gap, so that then you can focus on finding your full-time job without the stress that comes with being worried about the money.” \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11948895/layoffs-how-to-save-more-money-after-losing-your-job\">Read more about how to save money after a layoff.\u003c/a>\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11949833\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2560px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11949833\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/05/GettyImages-924872486-scaled.jpg\" alt=\"A man wearing construction gear stands in the street, near a work area, and talks to another man that is sitting inside a truck.\" width=\"2560\" height=\"1707\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/05/GettyImages-924872486-scaled.jpg 2560w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/05/GettyImages-924872486-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/05/GettyImages-924872486-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/05/GettyImages-924872486-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/05/GettyImages-924872486-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/05/GettyImages-924872486-2048x1365.jpg 2048w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/05/GettyImages-924872486-1920x1280.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2560px) 100vw, 2560px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">If you’re reaching out to your friends and former colleagues to look for job opportunities, it may be best to contact people individually to explain what you’re looking for. \u003ccite>(Markus Bernhard/Getty Images)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003ch2>\u003ca id=\"networks\">\u003c/a>Activate your networks (without spamming people)\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>This is another piece of common job-hunting advice you might have heard before: Immediately let your friends and professional networks know you’re looking for a new job. But how can you do this in a way that actually works — and doesn’t put the people you know in an uncomfortable position?\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>First, says Govin, don’t reach out to anyone until you’ve done that internal work of establishing what you want your next job to look like. Next, he recommended that instead of “blasting out a message on social media, whether it’s LinkedIn or elsewhere, saying, ‘Hey, I’m looking for a job,’” a more effective way might be to reach out to people individually.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>He recommends that you lead with honesty and clarity in these messages — especially if this is the first time you’re reaching out to people in a while — and tell them:\u003c/p>\n\u003cul>\n\u003cli>You’re on the market for a new job, and are actively seeking new opportunities.\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>What kind of opportunities you’re looking for.\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>You’d love to hear back from them if they know of any opportunities that match.\u003c/li>\n\u003c/ul>\n\u003cp>Get in touch with as many people as you can one-on-one, says Govin — and remember that most of them will \u003cem>want\u003c/em> to be of assistance. “You likely have a lot of friends and former colleagues that are more than happy to help you, and keep an eye out and an ear out for opportunities,” he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Speaking of networks: Form a support group\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>If you were part of a larger layoff, you just became one of many people going through the same situation. “Take advantage of that,” advised Govin. “Use them as support. Use them as part of your community, and help each other out as you’re going through the next step in your career.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Not only is this kind of community key for potentially connecting you with new opportunities, but it can also offer you invaluable \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11949674/layoffs-mental-health-lost-job-self-care\">emotional support and boost your morale\u003c/a> — proving you’re not alone in this. It can also be empowering to give back this kind of support to others in the same situation.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Leaning on a support group of people in the same boat will also relieve some of the pressure from within your personal life, says Govin. “There’s only so much that your family and your friends want to hear about your job hunt,” he said, “so find a group of people who really can relate and who are there to support you and guide you through the process.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11949839\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2560px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11949839\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/05/GettyImages-1084167994-scaled.jpg\" alt=\"Man with beard and glasses looks at his phone screen while sitting next to a desk.\" width=\"2560\" height=\"1709\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/05/GettyImages-1084167994-scaled.jpg 2560w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/05/GettyImages-1084167994-800x534.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/05/GettyImages-1084167994-1020x681.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/05/GettyImages-1084167994-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/05/GettyImages-1084167994-1536x1025.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/05/GettyImages-1084167994-2048x1367.jpg 2048w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/05/GettyImages-1084167994-1920x1281.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2560px) 100vw, 2560px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">‘Treat the job hunt like a marathon, not a sprint,’ said career coach Horst Govin, adding that it’s important to set time aside to do the things that fulfill you. \u003ccite>(10'000 Hours/Getty Images)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003ch2>\u003ca id=\"scrolling\">\u003c/a>Endlessly scrolling job listings online isn’t good for you — or your search\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Govin says he advises his clients \u003cem>against\u003c/em> searching for jobs every single day. While new jobs get posted constantly, “it’s not productive to be spending all of your time poring through posted jobs on job boards or LinkedIn or other sites,” he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Instead, Govin advised that you “dedicate a lot of time once a week to do that.” He suggests Thursdays as a good day for this, in which you can set aside a few hours and review all the new postings that have come online since the previous Thursday. “That way,” he said, “you’re batching all that effort into one time a week,” and containing it to two or three hours.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>Not only can this approach be beneficial to your emotional health — rather than overwhelming you with endlessly scrolling job posts — but it also frees up the rest of your week to focus on other types of job search activities, said Govin. “Responding to job ads is only one way of looking for a job — and in many cases, it’s the least effective, because there are so many other applicants that you’re competing with.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A more “diversified job search strategy” might also encompass “leveraging your network, reaching out to contacts, being very targeted and looking for very specific roles at companies that you’re interested in or working with people that you want to work with,” recommended Govin.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Treat the job hunt like a marathon, not a sprint,” he said. “You really need to preserve your energy and your time.” Treating your job hunt like a job also means fully logging off once you’ve done your part for the day, and doing the things that fulfill you: spending time with loved ones, hobbies, exercise or spending time outdoors.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>This period of job hunting is temporary, and has an end point: when you finally find your next opportunity. But until then, “you have to pace yourself. You have to take time out to do things that will nurture you,” said Govin, adding that you’ll want to “do whatever you can to just keep every other aspect of your life on a positive level.” \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11949674/layoffs-mental-health-lost-job-self-care\">Read more tips for taking care of your mental health during a job search. \u003c/a>\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Finally, keep perspective — the job market is ‘a numbers game’\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>You’re going to get frustrated with applying to jobs you never hear back about, said Govin, and that’s all part of the process. Like many people who have been laid off recently, you’re getting back out there — which means you’re now one of a lot of people on the job market.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Even if you’ve spent a long time polishing your résumé and crafting a killer application, the truth, said Govin, “is when you submit an application, you’re basically dropping an envelope in a black box. And sometimes that black box turns into a black hole — and it’s gone.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>So how do you keep moving forward when it feels like you’re not moving forward in your job search? Just like it’s important to realize that getting laid off wasn’t your fault, you need to also acknowledge that not hearing back from job applications “has nothing to do with you,” said Govin.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>“There might be 500 other people applying for the same job,” he said, meaning that the hiring manager on the other end has “an incredible, Herculean task” to sort through them all. “I wouldn’t want to be in that role, either, because how do you sort through that?” said Govin. “How do you find the one or two or three people who are perfect for that job?”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I always tell my clients: The job hunt is a numbers game,” he said. “For every job out there, if there are a hundred applicants, only one person is going to get the job. And 99 people are not going to get the job. And in most cases, you’re going to be one of the 99 people.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>So as tiring as it feels, he said, “you have to keep playing the numbers game — until you find the opportunity where \u003cem>you\u003c/em> become the one who gets the job.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Make sure to read the rest of our KQED guides about other steps you can take after a layoff to better support yourself and those who depend on you:\u003c/p>\n\u003cul>\n\u003cli>\u003cstrong>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11949674/layoffs-mental-health-lost-job-self-care\">How to Prioritize Your Mental Health After Losing Your Job, From Telling Family to Self-Care\u003c/a>\u003c/strong>\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>\u003cstrong>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11949192/layoffs-unemployment-benefits-health-insurance-calfresh\">From Unemployment Benefits to Health Insurance, the Steps to Take ASAP\u003c/a>\u003c/strong>\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>\u003cstrong>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11948895/layoffs-how-to-save-more-money-after-losing-your-job\">How to Save More Money After Losing Your Job\u003c/a>\u003c/strong>\u003c/li>\n\u003c/ul>\n\u003ch2>\u003ca id=\"tellus\">\u003c/a>Tell us: What else do you need information about?\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>At KQED News, we know that it can sometimes be hard to track down the answers to navigate life in the Bay Area in 2023. We’ve published \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/coronavirus-resources-and-explainers\">clear, helpful explainers and guides about issues like COVID\u003c/a>, \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11936674/how-to-prepare-for-this-weeks-atmospheric-river-storm-sandbags-emergency-kits-and-more\">how to cope with intense winter weather\u003c/a> and \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11821950/how-to-safely-attend-a-protest-in-the-bay-area\">how to exercise your right to protest safely\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>So tell us: What do you need to know more about? Tell us, and you could see your question answered online or on social media. What you submit will make our reporting stronger, and help us decide what to cover here on our site, and on KQED Public Radio, too.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cp>California’s unemployment rate fell to 3.9% in July, the lowest point since 1976, as employers in the nation’s most populous state continued to defy expectations by adding 84,800 new jobs.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>New numbers released Friday by the state’s Employment Development Department, showing month-over-month job growth in 17 out of the last 18 months, suggest that \u003ca href=\"https://edd.ca.gov/en/about_edd/news_releases_and_announcements/unemployment-july-2022/\">California’s labor market has so far been largely immune\u003c/a> from record-high inflation nationwide and a cooldown in the housing market, both of which have prompted warnings of an economic slowdown.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Ten of California’s 11 industry sectors had job growth in July, led by big gains in computer systems’ design, advertising, security services and health care. While California makes up 11.7% of the nation’s civilian labor force, the state accounted for 16.1% of all new jobs in the U.S. last month, according to Friday’s report.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>More than 18.5 million Californians were employed in July, an increase of nearly a million people since July 2021, according to the report. Meanwhile, the number of unemployed Californians in July — 758,700 — was down by some 648,000, as compared to last year.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>That job gain in the state comes despite a decline in both job postings and sales of single-family homes — a major driver of California’s economy — the latter slowing 14.4% in July compared to June, and down 31.1% from a year ago, according to the California Association of Realtors. California’s housing market reflects \u003ca href=\"https://apnews.com/article/home-sales-prices-1331a8bd045d3cef81174e81154bb26d\">an overall slowdown in home sales nationally\u003c/a>, which declined in July for the sixth straight month.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s certainly surprising,” former EDD Director Michael Bernick said of California’s job gains. “It goes against all the other economic indicators.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[aside label=\"related coverage\" tag=\"jobs\"]California lost more than 2.7 million jobs in just the first two months of the pandemic in 2020, when Gov. Gavin Newsom issued the nation’s first statewide stay-at-home order that forced many businesses to close.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It has taken more than two years for the state to get most of those jobs back, and July’s upbeat jobs report indicates the state has recovered 97.3% of those pandemic job losses.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Now an attorney with the Duane Morris law firm, Bernick — who closely tracks California’s labor market — said he suspects California is still being propped up by billions of dollars from federal stimulus spending and the state’s budget surplus. The recently passed Inflation Reduction Act in Congress will also send more money to the state, lowering some prescription drug costs while \u003ca href=\"https://apnews.com/8758c06e78dc33a9e472bff6517bdb85\">helping millions pay their monthly health insurance premiums\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But, Bernick cautioned, “That is not going to continue forever.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The biggest reason for the decline in California’s unemployment rate is the large number of new jobs added in July. But another factor is that an estimated 23,400 people stopped looking for work in July, reducing the state’s labor force. Some industries are continuing to see an acute labor shortage, mostly in restaurants and hotels, according to Sung Won Sohn, an economics professor at Loyola Marymount University.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I think the labor force will go up in the future because people need to earn extra income to beat inflation,” he said. “We are already seeing so-called gig employment rising because some people are holding two or three jobs. The fear of an oncoming recession, if we are not in one already, will cause people to look for work.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>California’s budget includes $9.5 billion in refunds to about 23 million people, something Newsom touted Friday when boasting about the low unemployment rate.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We have historic reserves and we’re putting money back in peoples’ pockets as we continue to lead the nation’s economic recovery,” he said in a news release.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Across the country, \u003ca href=\"https://www.bls.gov/news.release/laus.nr0.htm\">unemployment rates dropped in 14 states in July, rose in three, and stayed the same in 33\u003c/a>, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>California’s unemployment rate is slightly lower than the one in Texas, but still higher than those in Florida and Alabama — all Republican-led states whose leaders Newsom has publicly feuded with in recent months.\u003c/p>\n\n",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>California’s unemployment rate fell to 3.9% in July, the lowest point since 1976, as employers in the nation’s most populous state continued to defy expectations by adding 84,800 new jobs.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>New numbers released Friday by the state’s Employment Development Department, showing month-over-month job growth in 17 out of the last 18 months, suggest that \u003ca href=\"https://edd.ca.gov/en/about_edd/news_releases_and_announcements/unemployment-july-2022/\">California’s labor market has so far been largely immune\u003c/a> from record-high inflation nationwide and a cooldown in the housing market, both of which have prompted warnings of an economic slowdown.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Ten of California’s 11 industry sectors had job growth in July, led by big gains in computer systems’ design, advertising, security services and health care. While California makes up 11.7% of the nation’s civilian labor force, the state accounted for 16.1% of all new jobs in the U.S. last month, according to Friday’s report.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>More than 18.5 million Californians were employed in July, an increase of nearly a million people since July 2021, according to the report. Meanwhile, the number of unemployed Californians in July — 758,700 — was down by some 648,000, as compared to last year.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>That job gain in the state comes despite a decline in both job postings and sales of single-family homes — a major driver of California’s economy — the latter slowing 14.4% in July compared to June, and down 31.1% from a year ago, according to the California Association of Realtors. California’s housing market reflects \u003ca href=\"https://apnews.com/article/home-sales-prices-1331a8bd045d3cef81174e81154bb26d\">an overall slowdown in home sales nationally\u003c/a>, which declined in July for the sixth straight month.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s certainly surprising,” former EDD Director Michael Bernick said of California’s job gains. “It goes against all the other economic indicators.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>California lost more than 2.7 million jobs in just the first two months of the pandemic in 2020, when Gov. Gavin Newsom issued the nation’s first statewide stay-at-home order that forced many businesses to close.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It has taken more than two years for the state to get most of those jobs back, and July’s upbeat jobs report indicates the state has recovered 97.3% of those pandemic job losses.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Now an attorney with the Duane Morris law firm, Bernick — who closely tracks California’s labor market — said he suspects California is still being propped up by billions of dollars from federal stimulus spending and the state’s budget surplus. The recently passed Inflation Reduction Act in Congress will also send more money to the state, lowering some prescription drug costs while \u003ca href=\"https://apnews.com/8758c06e78dc33a9e472bff6517bdb85\">helping millions pay their monthly health insurance premiums\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But, Bernick cautioned, “That is not going to continue forever.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The biggest reason for the decline in California’s unemployment rate is the large number of new jobs added in July. But another factor is that an estimated 23,400 people stopped looking for work in July, reducing the state’s labor force. Some industries are continuing to see an acute labor shortage, mostly in restaurants and hotels, according to Sung Won Sohn, an economics professor at Loyola Marymount University.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I think the labor force will go up in the future because people need to earn extra income to beat inflation,” he said. “We are already seeing so-called gig employment rising because some people are holding two or three jobs. The fear of an oncoming recession, if we are not in one already, will cause people to look for work.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>California’s budget includes $9.5 billion in refunds to about 23 million people, something Newsom touted Friday when boasting about the low unemployment rate.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We have historic reserves and we’re putting money back in peoples’ pockets as we continue to lead the nation’s economic recovery,” he said in a news release.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Across the country, \u003ca href=\"https://www.bls.gov/news.release/laus.nr0.htm\">unemployment rates dropped in 14 states in July, rose in three, and stayed the same in 33\u003c/a>, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>California’s unemployment rate is slightly lower than the one in Texas, but still higher than those in Florida and Alabama — all Republican-led states whose leaders Newsom has publicly feuded with in recent months.\u003c/p>\n\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"content": "\u003cp>One morning in March, an undocumented farmworker on the Central Coast got ready to make a phone call she’d made dozens of times before, to a state agency where a human rarely answered.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It had been three months since she’d applied for the partial wage replacement most California workers are eligible for — regardless of immigration status — when they are disabled due to pregnancy or other health reasons.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But Reina, who at the time was six months pregnant, had not yet received a reply from the Employment Development Department on her claim, let alone the money she had counted on to pay rent. The 33-year-old said she was so anxious that she sometimes got headaches and couldn’t stomach food. (KQED is not using Reina’s full name because of her immigration status.)\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[aside label=\"Related Stories\" tag=\"edd\"]“It was so difficult for me and my family,” she said in Spanish, adding that the agency had paid her past State Disability Insurance benefits with little delay when she had her three older sons, now ages 2 to 10. “I never imagined it would take so long this time around.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>That same month, about 300 miles away in Santa Clarita, a frustrated Amanda Butler got in the car with her 2-week-old infant, 4-year-old son and husband. He drove the family nearly an hour to a crowded EDD office in downtown Los Angeles. Like Reina, Butler had tried calling the agency but couldn’t reach a person to explain why she hadn’t received her biweekly SDI payments yet.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s the last thing you want to deal with when you have a newborn, you are recovering from a C-section and you are having to nurse, like, every hour,” said Butler, 37, who manages fundraising campaigns for the nonprofit BreastfeedLA. “It was stressful.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Potentially tens of thousands of disabled Californians have been forced to wait several weeks or even months for their benefits after the EDD redirected significant resources to respond to a fraud scheme that hit the agency late last year.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The EDD, which has struggled with \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11866438/after-a-string-of-bungled-tech-upgrades-california-tries-a-new-approach\">outdated computer systems\u003c/a> and costly \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11893715/californias-unemployment-fraud-balloons-to-20-billion\">fraud attacks\u003c/a>, is still falling short of its own standards for processing benefits for eligible claimants in a timely fashion, while weeding out scammers.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Nearly \u003ca href=\"https://edd.ca.gov/siteassets/files/about_edd/pdf/edddiforecastoct21.pdf\">18 million California employees are covered by the SDI program\u003c/a> through a payroll tax. The program often offers to pay 60% of a person’s wages for up to 52 weeks. A \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11918450/workers-wont-get-expanded-paid-family-leave-disability-under-california-budget-agreement\">bill to significantly increase the payment rate\u003c/a> is advancing in the Legislature.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Since January 2017, the EDD’s own statistics show \u003ca href=\"https://data.edd.ca.gov/browse?category=Disability+Insurance&utf8=%E2%9C%93\">it has received an average of 60,000 initial claims per month\u003c/a>. But that figure more than doubled in December 2021. By January, the agency announced \u003ca href=\"https://edd.ca.gov/siteassets/files/about_edd/pdf/news-22-02.pdf\">it suspended 345,000 claims it had flagged as suspicious\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The EDD aims to pay 86% of SDI claims within 14 days, as it expects some complex cases to take longer to investigate and resolve. Yet by April, according to new figures obtained by KQED, almost half of disability applications took 15 days or longer to process.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s absolutely unacceptable, and it’s something we need to look at,” said Assemblymember Buffy Wicks, D-Oakland. “We have a social safety net for a reason. It’s to help people who are in need. That is a fundamental social contract the government has with its constituency. So it’s infuriating that this is happening.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Wicks, who sits on a \u003ca href=\"https://abgt.assembly.ca.gov/sub4stateadministration\">subcommittee that oversees the EDD’s budget\u003c/a>, said she plans to raise the issue with the agency in the next legislative year.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The EDD declined several interview requests by KQED. In an email, an EDD spokesperson said delays have subsided, with close to 30% of claims — about 11,000 — affected by longer processing times as of mid-July.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But in \u003ca href=\"https://edd.ca.gov/siteassets/files/about_edd/pdf/news-21-69.pdf\">press releases\u003c/a> and emails, the agency said suspected organized criminals filed false claims using the stolen identities of medical providers who must \u003ca href=\"https://edd.ca.gov/en/Disability/How_to_File_a_DI_Claim_in_SDI_Online\">certify a disability before the EDD issues payments\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The agency redirected resources to review hundreds of thousands of claims associated with about 27,000 fake medical accounts, and was able to block billions of dollars in fraud attempts, according to a spokesperson.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The work involved in resolving that fraud attack issue certainly impacted our ability to remain timely with all of our claims at that time,” the spokesperson wrote.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11922622\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 1640px\">\u003ca href=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2022/08/delays2-e1660609931927.png\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-11922622 size-full\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2022/08/delays2-e1660609931927.png\" alt=\"A horizontal bar chart showing the percentage of EDD disability claims from Nov. 2021 - June 2022.\" width=\"1640\" height=\"676\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2022/08/delays2-e1660609931927.png 1640w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2022/08/delays2-e1660609931927-800x330.png 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2022/08/delays2-e1660609931927-1020x420.png 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2022/08/delays2-e1660609931927-160x66.png 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2022/08/delays2-e1660609931927-1536x633.png 1536w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1640px) 100vw, 1640px\">\u003c/a>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Data provided by the California Employment Development Department. \u003ccite>(Chart by Farida Jhabvala Romero/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003ch2>\u003cstrong>‘A terrible experience’\u003c/strong>\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>It’s unclear whether the agency initially flagged Reina and Butler’s cases as potentially fraudulent, or whether the agency didn’t have enough staff to follow up promptly on their claims.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Butler believes her in-person visit to the EDD’s office in Los Angeles made all the difference. An agency representative told her they had mistakenly believed she’d returned to work when she hadn’t. Once the problem was fixed, Butler’s payments started a few days later. The delay she experienced was about a week, she said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I don’t think that they’re set up to really support a new parent, because of all the hoops that they have to go through in order to get paid,” said Butler, who has now returned to part-time work. “I can’t imagine having to wait longer.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Claimants without valid Social Security numbers like Reina, who is not fluent in English, must file their requests on paper, according to the EDD.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Reina, who had to wait for seven months for her disability payments, struggled to feed her family, often having to stand in line at food banks. By April, she and her husband, also a farmworker whose seasonal work declined, couldn’t pay rent for their small house in Watsonville. The family was saved from falling into homelessness by a last-minute loan from Reina’s sister, she said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It was a terrible experience,” said Reina, who remembers longing to buy comfortable maternity clothes, but knowing that she didn’t have the money. “It felt very ugly.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11922536\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 1920px\">\u003ca href=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2022/08/RS57774_IMG_5588-Reina-walks-qut.jpg\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11922536\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2022/08/RS57774_IMG_5588-Reina-walks-qut.jpg\" alt=\"a mother and her two songs are seen from behind walking down the street\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1440\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2022/08/RS57774_IMG_5588-Reina-walks-qut.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2022/08/RS57774_IMG_5588-Reina-walks-qut-800x600.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2022/08/RS57774_IMG_5588-Reina-walks-qut-1020x765.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2022/08/RS57774_IMG_5588-Reina-walks-qut-160x120.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2022/08/RS57774_IMG_5588-Reina-walks-qut-1536x1152.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px\">\u003c/a>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Reina, 33, holds her baby while walking with her two older sons in Watsonville. KQED is not using her full name because of her immigration status. \u003ccite>(Farida Jhabvala Romero/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003ch2>Prioritizing fraud claims over benefits\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Earlier in the pandemic, the EDD delayed payments for roughly 5 million unemployed Californians and improperly denied likely 1 million more while it dealt with a sudden increase in claims and fraud, according to a report released last week by the Legislative Analyst’s Office.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[pullquote align=\"right\" size=\"medium\" citation=\"Amanda Butler, Santa Clarita parent\"]‘I don’t think that they’re set up to really support a new parent, because of all the hoops that they have to go through in order to get paid.’[/pullquote]As of last fall, the agency had paid an estimated $20 billion in fake pandemic unemployment relief claims, nearly all of it tied to a now expired federal emergency program that the EDD administered. This summer, state officials announced \u003ca href=\"https://www.gov.ca.gov/2022/06/21/edd-recovers-1-1-billion-in-unemployment-insurance-funds-with-more-investigations-and-recoveries-to-come/\">the agency had recovered $1.1 billion\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But the EDD prioritized eliminating fraud over making sure eligible workers could easily get their unemployment insurance benefits, which caused hardships for Californians in need and held back the state’s economy, the LAO said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Our dozen or so recommendations are, in effect, a series of safeguards to ensure that getting workers benefits quickly is a top priority for the state because over the last several decades those safeguards haven’t been in place,” said Chas Alamo, the LAO analyst who authored the report. “And now we are in a position where we got a program that causes a great deal of frustration for workers during downturns.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>This year, legitimate disability claimants received no notice or communication from the EDD for months, according to Lizett Rodriguez Peña, an attorney at the Watsonville Law Center who helped Reina and a dozen more farmworkers navigate delays of on average six months on their claims.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>When her clients tried calling the EDD to find out what they needed to do to get their benefits processed, they faced a wall of voicemail, she said. In January, \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/economy/2022/06/edd-disability-calls/\">calls to the agency’s disability insurance program surged to more than 5 million\u003c/a>, as reported by CalMatters.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Even during her own maternity leave earlier in the year, Rodriguez Peña saw her SDI payments unexpectedly halted.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I called multiple times and my call would just get disconnected,” she said. “This is why I find it so ironic, because I help individuals go through that, but I was struggling trying to get someone live to talk.”\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>\u003cstrong>With new state budget, hope for improvement\u003c/strong>\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>An EDD spokesperson said the agency agrees it must better balance the need to prevent fraud with the work of delivering timely payments to eligible workers.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The recently enacted state budget includes $136 million for the agency to boost its customer experience by improving call centers, simplifying forms, developing data tools to curb fraudulent claims and speeding up the pace of application processing, according to the agency spokesperson. The \u003ca href=\"https://esd.dof.ca.gov/Documents/bcp/2223/FY2223_ORG7100_BCP6006.pdf\">changes\u003c/a>, which promise to also add multiple language options for users, are expected to be completed by June 2023.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>While almost eight months pregnant, Reina said she spent half a day at an EDD office in San José with documents to help verify her identity.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The agency denied her claim in a letter dated April 22, claiming the strawberry picker had not earned wages to qualify her for SDI benefits, according to Rodriguez Peña. She said she followed up with the EDD, alerting them Reina had submitted proof of wages with her initial application on Dec. 1, 2021.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Finally, on June 21, the EDD reversed its decision and granted Reina disability payments totaling around $10,000. Her doctor had recommended she stop working after her third trimester, partly because Reina’s growing belly hurt too much while bending close to the ground to collect strawberries.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Looking back at the ordeal, the Indigenous immigrant from Mexico said she almost gave up. But she reminded herself that she’d paid SDI taxes with every paycheck.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad floatright]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I know they say some people commit fraud. But I was telling the truth,” Reina said. “So why did they take so long?”\u003c/p>\n\n",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>“It was so difficult for me and my family,” she said in Spanish, adding that the agency had paid her past State Disability Insurance benefits with little delay when she had her three older sons, now ages 2 to 10. “I never imagined it would take so long this time around.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>That same month, about 300 miles away in Santa Clarita, a frustrated Amanda Butler got in the car with her 2-week-old infant, 4-year-old son and husband. He drove the family nearly an hour to a crowded EDD office in downtown Los Angeles. Like Reina, Butler had tried calling the agency but couldn’t reach a person to explain why she hadn’t received her biweekly SDI payments yet.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s the last thing you want to deal with when you have a newborn, you are recovering from a C-section and you are having to nurse, like, every hour,” said Butler, 37, who manages fundraising campaigns for the nonprofit BreastfeedLA. “It was stressful.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Potentially tens of thousands of disabled Californians have been forced to wait several weeks or even months for their benefits after the EDD redirected significant resources to respond to a fraud scheme that hit the agency late last year.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The EDD, which has struggled with \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11866438/after-a-string-of-bungled-tech-upgrades-california-tries-a-new-approach\">outdated computer systems\u003c/a> and costly \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11893715/californias-unemployment-fraud-balloons-to-20-billion\">fraud attacks\u003c/a>, is still falling short of its own standards for processing benefits for eligible claimants in a timely fashion, while weeding out scammers.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Nearly \u003ca href=\"https://edd.ca.gov/siteassets/files/about_edd/pdf/edddiforecastoct21.pdf\">18 million California employees are covered by the SDI program\u003c/a> through a payroll tax. The program often offers to pay 60% of a person’s wages for up to 52 weeks. A \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11918450/workers-wont-get-expanded-paid-family-leave-disability-under-california-budget-agreement\">bill to significantly increase the payment rate\u003c/a> is advancing in the Legislature.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Since January 2017, the EDD’s own statistics show \u003ca href=\"https://data.edd.ca.gov/browse?category=Disability+Insurance&utf8=%E2%9C%93\">it has received an average of 60,000 initial claims per month\u003c/a>. But that figure more than doubled in December 2021. By January, the agency announced \u003ca href=\"https://edd.ca.gov/siteassets/files/about_edd/pdf/news-22-02.pdf\">it suspended 345,000 claims it had flagged as suspicious\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The EDD aims to pay 86% of SDI claims within 14 days, as it expects some complex cases to take longer to investigate and resolve. Yet by April, according to new figures obtained by KQED, almost half of disability applications took 15 days or longer to process.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s absolutely unacceptable, and it’s something we need to look at,” said Assemblymember Buffy Wicks, D-Oakland. “We have a social safety net for a reason. It’s to help people who are in need. That is a fundamental social contract the government has with its constituency. So it’s infuriating that this is happening.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Wicks, who sits on a \u003ca href=\"https://abgt.assembly.ca.gov/sub4stateadministration\">subcommittee that oversees the EDD’s budget\u003c/a>, said she plans to raise the issue with the agency in the next legislative year.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The EDD declined several interview requests by KQED. In an email, an EDD spokesperson said delays have subsided, with close to 30% of claims — about 11,000 — affected by longer processing times as of mid-July.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But in \u003ca href=\"https://edd.ca.gov/siteassets/files/about_edd/pdf/news-21-69.pdf\">press releases\u003c/a> and emails, the agency said suspected organized criminals filed false claims using the stolen identities of medical providers who must \u003ca href=\"https://edd.ca.gov/en/Disability/How_to_File_a_DI_Claim_in_SDI_Online\">certify a disability before the EDD issues payments\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The agency redirected resources to review hundreds of thousands of claims associated with about 27,000 fake medical accounts, and was able to block billions of dollars in fraud attempts, according to a spokesperson.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The work involved in resolving that fraud attack issue certainly impacted our ability to remain timely with all of our claims at that time,” the spokesperson wrote.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11922622\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 1640px\">\u003ca href=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2022/08/delays2-e1660609931927.png\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-11922622 size-full\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2022/08/delays2-e1660609931927.png\" alt=\"A horizontal bar chart showing the percentage of EDD disability claims from Nov. 2021 - June 2022.\" width=\"1640\" height=\"676\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2022/08/delays2-e1660609931927.png 1640w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2022/08/delays2-e1660609931927-800x330.png 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2022/08/delays2-e1660609931927-1020x420.png 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2022/08/delays2-e1660609931927-160x66.png 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2022/08/delays2-e1660609931927-1536x633.png 1536w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1640px) 100vw, 1640px\">\u003c/a>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Data provided by the California Employment Development Department. \u003ccite>(Chart by Farida Jhabvala Romero/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003ch2>\u003cstrong>‘A terrible experience’\u003c/strong>\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>It’s unclear whether the agency initially flagged Reina and Butler’s cases as potentially fraudulent, or whether the agency didn’t have enough staff to follow up promptly on their claims.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Butler believes her in-person visit to the EDD’s office in Los Angeles made all the difference. An agency representative told her they had mistakenly believed she’d returned to work when she hadn’t. Once the problem was fixed, Butler’s payments started a few days later. The delay she experienced was about a week, she said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I don’t think that they’re set up to really support a new parent, because of all the hoops that they have to go through in order to get paid,” said Butler, who has now returned to part-time work. “I can’t imagine having to wait longer.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Claimants without valid Social Security numbers like Reina, who is not fluent in English, must file their requests on paper, according to the EDD.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Reina, who had to wait for seven months for her disability payments, struggled to feed her family, often having to stand in line at food banks. By April, she and her husband, also a farmworker whose seasonal work declined, couldn’t pay rent for their small house in Watsonville. The family was saved from falling into homelessness by a last-minute loan from Reina’s sister, she said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It was a terrible experience,” said Reina, who remembers longing to buy comfortable maternity clothes, but knowing that she didn’t have the money. “It felt very ugly.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11922536\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 1920px\">\u003ca href=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2022/08/RS57774_IMG_5588-Reina-walks-qut.jpg\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11922536\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2022/08/RS57774_IMG_5588-Reina-walks-qut.jpg\" alt=\"a mother and her two songs are seen from behind walking down the street\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1440\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2022/08/RS57774_IMG_5588-Reina-walks-qut.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2022/08/RS57774_IMG_5588-Reina-walks-qut-800x600.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2022/08/RS57774_IMG_5588-Reina-walks-qut-1020x765.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2022/08/RS57774_IMG_5588-Reina-walks-qut-160x120.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2022/08/RS57774_IMG_5588-Reina-walks-qut-1536x1152.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px\">\u003c/a>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Reina, 33, holds her baby while walking with her two older sons in Watsonville. KQED is not using her full name because of her immigration status. \u003ccite>(Farida Jhabvala Romero/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003ch2>Prioritizing fraud claims over benefits\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Earlier in the pandemic, the EDD delayed payments for roughly 5 million unemployed Californians and improperly denied likely 1 million more while it dealt with a sudden increase in claims and fraud, according to a report released last week by the Legislative Analyst’s Office.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>As of last fall, the agency had paid an estimated $20 billion in fake pandemic unemployment relief claims, nearly all of it tied to a now expired federal emergency program that the EDD administered. This summer, state officials announced \u003ca href=\"https://www.gov.ca.gov/2022/06/21/edd-recovers-1-1-billion-in-unemployment-insurance-funds-with-more-investigations-and-recoveries-to-come/\">the agency had recovered $1.1 billion\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But the EDD prioritized eliminating fraud over making sure eligible workers could easily get their unemployment insurance benefits, which caused hardships for Californians in need and held back the state’s economy, the LAO said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Our dozen or so recommendations are, in effect, a series of safeguards to ensure that getting workers benefits quickly is a top priority for the state because over the last several decades those safeguards haven’t been in place,” said Chas Alamo, the LAO analyst who authored the report. “And now we are in a position where we got a program that causes a great deal of frustration for workers during downturns.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>This year, legitimate disability claimants received no notice or communication from the EDD for months, according to Lizett Rodriguez Peña, an attorney at the Watsonville Law Center who helped Reina and a dozen more farmworkers navigate delays of on average six months on their claims.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>When her clients tried calling the EDD to find out what they needed to do to get their benefits processed, they faced a wall of voicemail, she said. In January, \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/economy/2022/06/edd-disability-calls/\">calls to the agency’s disability insurance program surged to more than 5 million\u003c/a>, as reported by CalMatters.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Even during her own maternity leave earlier in the year, Rodriguez Peña saw her SDI payments unexpectedly halted.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I called multiple times and my call would just get disconnected,” she said. “This is why I find it so ironic, because I help individuals go through that, but I was struggling trying to get someone live to talk.”\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>\u003cstrong>With new state budget, hope for improvement\u003c/strong>\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>An EDD spokesperson said the agency agrees it must better balance the need to prevent fraud with the work of delivering timely payments to eligible workers.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The recently enacted state budget includes $136 million for the agency to boost its customer experience by improving call centers, simplifying forms, developing data tools to curb fraudulent claims and speeding up the pace of application processing, according to the agency spokesperson. The \u003ca href=\"https://esd.dof.ca.gov/Documents/bcp/2223/FY2223_ORG7100_BCP6006.pdf\">changes\u003c/a>, which promise to also add multiple language options for users, are expected to be completed by June 2023.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>While almost eight months pregnant, Reina said she spent half a day at an EDD office in San José with documents to help verify her identity.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The agency denied her claim in a letter dated April 22, claiming the strawberry picker had not earned wages to qualify her for SDI benefits, according to Rodriguez Peña. She said she followed up with the EDD, alerting them Reina had submitted proof of wages with her initial application on Dec. 1, 2021.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Finally, on June 21, the EDD reversed its decision and granted Reina disability payments totaling around $10,000. Her doctor had recommended she stop working after her third trimester, partly because Reina’s growing belly hurt too much while bending close to the ground to collect strawberries.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Looking back at the ordeal, the Indigenous immigrant from Mexico said she almost gave up. But she reminded herself that she’d paid SDI taxes with every paycheck.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I know they say some people commit fraud. But I was telling the truth,” Reina said. “So why did they take so long?”\u003c/p>\n\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"title": "Why Are California Unemployment Checks So Hard to Get? New Report Has Ideas",
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"content": "\u003cp>If you get laid off, there’s a system that’s supposed to help you get by: unemployment benefits. Whenever California stares down a pandemic or a possible recession, the partial wage-replacement program is one of the most important economic safeguards for workers.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But the benefits have become more difficult for workers to access, due to the program’s design and decisions made by California’s embattled Employment Development Department. That’s according to an\u003ca href=\"https://lao.ca.gov/reports/2022/4615/Improving-CA-UI-Program-080822.pdf\"> in-depth report released Monday from the Legislative Analyst’s Office\u003c/a>, a nonpartisan agency that provides advice to the Legislature.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The report found that the benefits program’s orientation toward businesses — which fund the benefits and have an incentive to keep costs down — led the department to emphasize holding down costs. Pressure from the federal government to avoid errors led the department to try, however successfully, to minimize fraud.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The result, according to the report: The department pursued lowering costs and hindering fraud over making it easy for workers to access benefits.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Looked at individually, one of these policies might seem totally reasonable, either to limit fraud or to minimize business costs,” said Chas Alamo, the report’s author and principal fiscal and policy analyst with the Legislative Analyst’s Office. “But when you look at them, and kind of step back and look at the suite of policies that have been made over several decades, it becomes clear that there’s a sort of imbalance in the system.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Gov. Gavin Newsom’s press office directed questions about the report to the Employment Development Department, saying it was best suited to talk about the report.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Department spokesperson Gareth Lacy wrote in a statement that EDD “appreciates and will carefully review the LAO’s ideas for further simplifying processes and speeding up the delivery of services to Californians. Many of these ideas, such as limiting improper claim denials and minimizing delays, have been incorporated into \u003ca href=\"https://edd.ca.gov/siteassets/files/pdf/edd-2021-year-in-review_v06.pdf\">EDD actions over the past year.\u003c/a>”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Lacy also pointed to a modernization push at the department to improve call centers, simplify forms and notices, including user testing, developing data analysis tools to continue curbing fraud, and upgrading department training to increase the pace of application processing.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[aside label=\"Related Stories\" tag=\"unemployment\"]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Early in the COVID pandemic as joblessness rates soared, the department \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/explainers/california-unemployment-benefits/\">struggled to keep up with a surge of benefits claims\u003c/a> — leaving some Californians repeatedly calling the department in frustration and waiting weeks or months for the money to arrive.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Then came sensational reports that the department had paid out as much as\u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/newsletters/whatmatters/2021/10/california-edd-fixes/?utm_source=CalMatters+Newsletters&utm_campaign=785df30e77-WHATMATTERS&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_faa7be558d-785df30e77-151436580&mc_cid=785df30e77&mc_eid=582122f089\"> $20 billion in fraudulent benefits\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Last December, the department froze 345,000 disability insurance claims due to suspected fraud. As it tried to root out disability benefits fraud, \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/economy/2022/06/edd-disability-calls/?utm_source=CalMatters+Newsletters&utm_campaign=785df30e77-WHATMATTERS&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_faa7be558d-785df30e77-151436580&mc_cid=785df30e77&mc_eid=582122f089\">calls to the department with questions surged\u003c/a>, and many went unanswered.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Despite an increase in fraud during the pandemic, fraud has historically been uncommon in California’s unemployment benefits, likely “representing less than 1 percent of claims,” the report found. The vast majority of fraud that occurred during the pandemic was concentrated in a temporary federal program that has now ended.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The report lays out evidence that unemployment benefits have become too difficult for workers to access.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>When workers are denied benefits, for example, they’re allowed to file appeals. The report found that more than half of denials are overturned on appeal, meaning those workers should have gotten the benefits in the first place. By contrast, “less than one-quarter are overturned in the rest of the country,” the report found.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Also slowing the process: extensive, and sometimes confusing, steps to prove eligibility for California unemployment benefits.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The department’s actions during the pandemic suggest that getting payments to workers is not its highest priority, the report said. For example, the department disqualified about 1 in 4 unemployment benefits claims during the pandemic for failing to respond to the department’s requests for additional information — or because the department was not able to process the additional information provided in the allotted time frame.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Meanwhile, \u003ca href=\"https://www.govops.ca.gov/wp-content/uploads/sites/11/2020/09/Assessment.pdf\">a September 2020 report\u003c/a> written by a strike team assembled by Gov. Gavin Newsom found that during the same period, each department field office “had an estimated 450 pounds of unopened mail and had no system for processing unopened mail. Further, at the state’s call centers, less than 1 percent of callers reached an EDD staff member.”[pullquote size='medium' align='left' citation=\"Jim Patterson, Republican state assemblymember from Fresno\"]‘We’re just seeing the result of a bureaucratic system that wasn’t capable of doing its fundamental mission.’[/pullquote]The Legislative Analyst’s Office report also revealed that the Employment Development Department mischaracterized the number of people seeking jobless benefits that it was disqualifying or denying in reports to the Legislature.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>From the start of the pandemic to June 30, 2021, the department sent weekly dispatches to the Legislature. During that period, the department reported that it had disqualified or denied 705,000 unemployment benefits claims, according to the Legislative Analyst’s Office’s report. But the LAO found that the department disqualified at least 3.4 million during that period.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>When asked about this discrepancy, the department said it had interpreted the requirement to report to the Legislature to mean the number of people who were found not to qualify under state and federal eligibility rules, and so it did not report the number of people being disqualified by procedural rules.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“People should get fired for this,” said Jim Patterson, a Republican state assemblymember from Fresno, citing how the Legislature was misled.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The report corroborated what Patterson already sensed, he said — his office has helped about 3,000 constituents who had problems with the department. Through that process, he added, he saw how confounding the communication from the department to unemployed people sometimes is. “They write to constituents as if they’re creating a treatise for a master’s degree in confusion,” Patterson said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We’re just seeing the result of a bureaucratic system that wasn’t capable of doing its fundamental mission,” Patterson said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The LAO’s report makes over a dozen suggestions to remedy the issues it identifies, including recommendations for how to limit improper claim denials, minimize delays and simplify benefits applications.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The Legislature is investing in modernizing the system and bolstering cybersecurity resilience, Assemblymember Cottie Petrie-Norris, a Democrat from Costa Mesa who chairs the Committee on Accountability and Administrative Review, said in a statement. She added that she hoped that would lead to “major advances in how quickly the department can assess threats and resolve claims.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Making sure unemployment benefits work effectively isn’t just important for workers who have been laid off — it’s important for the whole economy, said Irena Asmundson, a research scholar at the Stanford Institute for Economic Policy Research and former chief economist for California’s Department of Finance.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>If people who lose their jobs in an economic downturn don’t have unemployment benefits, she said, then they have to pull back on their spending — making a bad situation worse. So unemployment benefits are meant to act as a stabilizer, giving laid-off workers some money to spend and blunting a downward spiral for the whole economy.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The report “misunderstands EDD’s recent activities to improve the process, and the deeper problems with [unemployment insurance] that go beyond the issues referenced in the report,” said former department director Michael Bernick, who is now special counsel with Duane Morris, a law firm. Bernick, who has also worked as a volunteer helping people who are trying to get benefits over the past two years, agrees that the process is too complex.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Yet many of the anti-fraud measures that the report blames for slowing down payments are required by federal protocols, Bernick wrote in an email.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The truth is that EDD must balance rapid payout and anti-fraud — a process that has become increasingly difficult with the heightened sophistication of identity theft rings, and the amount of money going through the system,” Bernick said. He added that newer measures to combat identity theft, including the addition of online verification tool ID.me, are on the right path.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad floatright]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>\u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/economy/2022/08/california-unemployment-benefits-3/\">This story originally appeared in CalMatters.\u003c/a>\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\n",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>If you get laid off, there’s a system that’s supposed to help you get by: unemployment benefits. Whenever California stares down a pandemic or a possible recession, the partial wage-replacement program is one of the most important economic safeguards for workers.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But the benefits have become more difficult for workers to access, due to the program’s design and decisions made by California’s embattled Employment Development Department. That’s according to an\u003ca href=\"https://lao.ca.gov/reports/2022/4615/Improving-CA-UI-Program-080822.pdf\"> in-depth report released Monday from the Legislative Analyst’s Office\u003c/a>, a nonpartisan agency that provides advice to the Legislature.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The report found that the benefits program’s orientation toward businesses — which fund the benefits and have an incentive to keep costs down — led the department to emphasize holding down costs. Pressure from the federal government to avoid errors led the department to try, however successfully, to minimize fraud.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The result, according to the report: The department pursued lowering costs and hindering fraud over making it easy for workers to access benefits.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Looked at individually, one of these policies might seem totally reasonable, either to limit fraud or to minimize business costs,” said Chas Alamo, the report’s author and principal fiscal and policy analyst with the Legislative Analyst’s Office. “But when you look at them, and kind of step back and look at the suite of policies that have been made over several decades, it becomes clear that there’s a sort of imbalance in the system.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Gov. Gavin Newsom’s press office directed questions about the report to the Employment Development Department, saying it was best suited to talk about the report.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Department spokesperson Gareth Lacy wrote in a statement that EDD “appreciates and will carefully review the LAO’s ideas for further simplifying processes and speeding up the delivery of services to Californians. Many of these ideas, such as limiting improper claim denials and minimizing delays, have been incorporated into \u003ca href=\"https://edd.ca.gov/siteassets/files/pdf/edd-2021-year-in-review_v06.pdf\">EDD actions over the past year.\u003c/a>”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Lacy also pointed to a modernization push at the department to improve call centers, simplify forms and notices, including user testing, developing data analysis tools to continue curbing fraud, and upgrading department training to increase the pace of application processing.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Early in the COVID pandemic as joblessness rates soared, the department \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/explainers/california-unemployment-benefits/\">struggled to keep up with a surge of benefits claims\u003c/a> — leaving some Californians repeatedly calling the department in frustration and waiting weeks or months for the money to arrive.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Then came sensational reports that the department had paid out as much as\u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/newsletters/whatmatters/2021/10/california-edd-fixes/?utm_source=CalMatters+Newsletters&utm_campaign=785df30e77-WHATMATTERS&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_faa7be558d-785df30e77-151436580&mc_cid=785df30e77&mc_eid=582122f089\"> $20 billion in fraudulent benefits\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Last December, the department froze 345,000 disability insurance claims due to suspected fraud. As it tried to root out disability benefits fraud, \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/economy/2022/06/edd-disability-calls/?utm_source=CalMatters+Newsletters&utm_campaign=785df30e77-WHATMATTERS&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_faa7be558d-785df30e77-151436580&mc_cid=785df30e77&mc_eid=582122f089\">calls to the department with questions surged\u003c/a>, and many went unanswered.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Despite an increase in fraud during the pandemic, fraud has historically been uncommon in California’s unemployment benefits, likely “representing less than 1 percent of claims,” the report found. The vast majority of fraud that occurred during the pandemic was concentrated in a temporary federal program that has now ended.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The report lays out evidence that unemployment benefits have become too difficult for workers to access.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>When workers are denied benefits, for example, they’re allowed to file appeals. The report found that more than half of denials are overturned on appeal, meaning those workers should have gotten the benefits in the first place. By contrast, “less than one-quarter are overturned in the rest of the country,” the report found.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Also slowing the process: extensive, and sometimes confusing, steps to prove eligibility for California unemployment benefits.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The department’s actions during the pandemic suggest that getting payments to workers is not its highest priority, the report said. For example, the department disqualified about 1 in 4 unemployment benefits claims during the pandemic for failing to respond to the department’s requests for additional information — or because the department was not able to process the additional information provided in the allotted time frame.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Meanwhile, \u003ca href=\"https://www.govops.ca.gov/wp-content/uploads/sites/11/2020/09/Assessment.pdf\">a September 2020 report\u003c/a> written by a strike team assembled by Gov. Gavin Newsom found that during the same period, each department field office “had an estimated 450 pounds of unopened mail and had no system for processing unopened mail. Further, at the state’s call centers, less than 1 percent of callers reached an EDD staff member.”\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "‘We’re just seeing the result of a bureaucratic system that wasn’t capable of doing its fundamental mission.’",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>The Legislative Analyst’s Office report also revealed that the Employment Development Department mischaracterized the number of people seeking jobless benefits that it was disqualifying or denying in reports to the Legislature.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>From the start of the pandemic to June 30, 2021, the department sent weekly dispatches to the Legislature. During that period, the department reported that it had disqualified or denied 705,000 unemployment benefits claims, according to the Legislative Analyst’s Office’s report. But the LAO found that the department disqualified at least 3.4 million during that period.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>When asked about this discrepancy, the department said it had interpreted the requirement to report to the Legislature to mean the number of people who were found not to qualify under state and federal eligibility rules, and so it did not report the number of people being disqualified by procedural rules.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“People should get fired for this,” said Jim Patterson, a Republican state assemblymember from Fresno, citing how the Legislature was misled.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The report corroborated what Patterson already sensed, he said — his office has helped about 3,000 constituents who had problems with the department. Through that process, he added, he saw how confounding the communication from the department to unemployed people sometimes is. “They write to constituents as if they’re creating a treatise for a master’s degree in confusion,” Patterson said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We’re just seeing the result of a bureaucratic system that wasn’t capable of doing its fundamental mission,” Patterson said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The LAO’s report makes over a dozen suggestions to remedy the issues it identifies, including recommendations for how to limit improper claim denials, minimize delays and simplify benefits applications.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The Legislature is investing in modernizing the system and bolstering cybersecurity resilience, Assemblymember Cottie Petrie-Norris, a Democrat from Costa Mesa who chairs the Committee on Accountability and Administrative Review, said in a statement. She added that she hoped that would lead to “major advances in how quickly the department can assess threats and resolve claims.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Making sure unemployment benefits work effectively isn’t just important for workers who have been laid off — it’s important for the whole economy, said Irena Asmundson, a research scholar at the Stanford Institute for Economic Policy Research and former chief economist for California’s Department of Finance.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>If people who lose their jobs in an economic downturn don’t have unemployment benefits, she said, then they have to pull back on their spending — making a bad situation worse. So unemployment benefits are meant to act as a stabilizer, giving laid-off workers some money to spend and blunting a downward spiral for the whole economy.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The report “misunderstands EDD’s recent activities to improve the process, and the deeper problems with [unemployment insurance] that go beyond the issues referenced in the report,” said former department director Michael Bernick, who is now special counsel with Duane Morris, a law firm. Bernick, who has also worked as a volunteer helping people who are trying to get benefits over the past two years, agrees that the process is too complex.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Yet many of the anti-fraud measures that the report blames for slowing down payments are required by federal protocols, Bernick wrote in an email.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The truth is that EDD must balance rapid payout and anti-fraud — a process that has become increasingly difficult with the heightened sophistication of identity theft rings, and the amount of money going through the system,” Bernick said. He added that newer measures to combat identity theft, including the addition of online verification tool ID.me, are on the right path.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cp>The state’s Employment Development Department (EDD) will drastically expand language support to better accommodate the at least \u003ca href=\"https://oag.ca.gov/consumers/limited-english\">7 million Californians who have a first language other than English\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>This announcement comes after nearly two years of legal mediation between EDD and advocacy groups around gaps in EDD’s language accommodations that advocates say put many Californians in very vulnerable positions. \u003ca href=\"https://lafla.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/LAFLA-DFEH-Complaint-Against-EDD.pdf\">The Legal Aid Foundation of Los Angeles (LAFLA) filed the initial complaint\u003c/a> that triggered this mediation, alleging that EDD was in violation of federal and state antidiscrimination mandates related to national origin, ethnic identification and linguistic characteristics.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>EDD has been expanding its language support throughout the course of the pandemic with tens of millions in funding through \u003ca href=\"https://esd.dof.ca.gov/Documents/bcp/2122/FY2122_ORG7100_BCP4803.pdf\">a language-access budget proposal\u003c/a> and \u003ca href=\"https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billNavClient.xhtml?bill_id=202120220AB138\">AB 138, a state bill that tackled unemployment insurance policies and practices\u003c/a>. However, the agency’s website and other services are still considerably more accessible for English and Spanish speakers when at least 2.4 million Californians aren’t primary English or Spanish speakers.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>According to advocates, an untold number of their clients resorted to paying third parties — who could often have predatory intentions — to help bridge these language support gaps.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\"We had somebody who waited seven months [for benefits] and they never even submitted his application,\" said Marisa Lundin, legal director of the Indigenous Program at California Rural Legal Assistance.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\"Sometimes the companies would create [alternate] email addresses for them — hold their usernames and passwords hostage,\" added Joann Lee, special counsel with LAFLA. \"They had to constantly pay to go back. Some were requiring a percentage of the benefits every time.\"\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The agreement is also being memorialized through a court filing — meaning the groups involved are basically filing a lawsuit, and then settling with EDD. It's intended to hold EDD accountable for implementing adjustments that will ensure Californians who aren’t primary English speakers will be better able to secure the support they need, through direct communication with EDD, going forward.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>So what's changing at EDD around multilingual support?\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>According to \u003ca href=\"https://edd.ca.gov/About_EDD/pdf/news-22-011.pdf\">a press release from EDD\u003c/a>, the agency will expand the number of dedicated phone lines with multilingual agents and the spectrum of written translations for online resources and applications.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\"Effective immediately, EDD is required to provide real-time oral interpretation over the phone, so when claimants call EDD … it has to get an interpreter on the line in the language the claimant needs so that they can really communicate,\" said Winnie Kao, senior counsel at \u003ca href=\"https://www.advancingjustice-alc.org/\">Advancing Justice — Asian Law Caucus\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>If EDD is unable to provide an agent with the needed language skills immediately, Kao said the agency is required to call the claimant back with the requested interpreter within five business days, though there are extra barriers that come up with these callbacks that are worth acknowledging.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The advocates KQED interviewed confirmed that people who struggle with language barriers also are often less likely to have good access to the technological tools, like reliable internet or smartphones, that can make getting through to EDD easier.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>https://twitter.com/KQED/status/1362945120274939904\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>EDD also has agreed to establish a multilingual advisory board. Lundin of California Rural Legal Assistance says the positive thing about this aspect of the agreement is that \"it really recognizes that this is a professional area. This is a whole profession, providing language services, and it's complex and it warrants investment and dedicated staff.\"\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\"It's not something that somebody could do in their free time on top of other responsibilities that they have at the agency,\" said Lundin.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Advocates hope that this step from EDD can serve as a model for other state agencies to learn how to provide more meaningful language access going forward.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\"I think it's worth noting that these state agencies are required by law to provide meaningful language access,\" noted Kao. This requirement extends to \"all Californians, including these claimants, who are entitled to these benefits, that pay into these benefits,\" Kao said, emphasizing how people \"desperately need these benefits in time of crisis.\"\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\"This isn't something extra. It's not like a charitable thing. It's a legal mandate,\" said Kao.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://lafla.org/press-release/ca-edd-language-access-agreement/\">Find details of the upcoming changes to EDD on LAFLA's site\u003c/a>, in English, Spanish, Tagalog, Arabic, Chinese (simplified and traditional), Dari, Farsi, Hindi, Japanese, Khmer, Korean, Punjabi, Russian, Thai and Vietnamese.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>If you're seeking help with unemployment insurance claims, you can call EDD's Unemployment Customer Service Center (open 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. PT, seven days a week except state holidays). Starting March 3, these hours will change to 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. PT, Monday through Friday.\u003c/p>\n\u003cul>\n\u003cli>English and Spanish: (800) 300-5616\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>Cantonese: (800) 547-3506\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>Mandarin: (866) 303-0706\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>Vietnamese: (800) 547-2058\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>California Relay Service (711): Provide the UI number — (800) 300-5616 — to the operator\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>TTY: (800) 815-9387\u003c/li>\n\u003c/ul>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>The state’s Employment Development Department (EDD) will drastically expand language support to better accommodate the at least \u003ca href=\"https://oag.ca.gov/consumers/limited-english\">7 million Californians who have a first language other than English\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>This announcement comes after nearly two years of legal mediation between EDD and advocacy groups around gaps in EDD’s language accommodations that advocates say put many Californians in very vulnerable positions. \u003ca href=\"https://lafla.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/LAFLA-DFEH-Complaint-Against-EDD.pdf\">The Legal Aid Foundation of Los Angeles (LAFLA) filed the initial complaint\u003c/a> that triggered this mediation, alleging that EDD was in violation of federal and state antidiscrimination mandates related to national origin, ethnic identification and linguistic characteristics.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>EDD has been expanding its language support throughout the course of the pandemic with tens of millions in funding through \u003ca href=\"https://esd.dof.ca.gov/Documents/bcp/2122/FY2122_ORG7100_BCP4803.pdf\">a language-access budget proposal\u003c/a> and \u003ca href=\"https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billNavClient.xhtml?bill_id=202120220AB138\">AB 138, a state bill that tackled unemployment insurance policies and practices\u003c/a>. However, the agency’s website and other services are still considerably more accessible for English and Spanish speakers when at least 2.4 million Californians aren’t primary English or Spanish speakers.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>According to advocates, an untold number of their clients resorted to paying third parties — who could often have predatory intentions — to help bridge these language support gaps.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\"We had somebody who waited seven months [for benefits] and they never even submitted his application,\" said Marisa Lundin, legal director of the Indigenous Program at California Rural Legal Assistance.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\"Sometimes the companies would create [alternate] email addresses for them — hold their usernames and passwords hostage,\" added Joann Lee, special counsel with LAFLA. \"They had to constantly pay to go back. Some were requiring a percentage of the benefits every time.\"\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The agreement is also being memorialized through a court filing — meaning the groups involved are basically filing a lawsuit, and then settling with EDD. It's intended to hold EDD accountable for implementing adjustments that will ensure Californians who aren’t primary English speakers will be better able to secure the support they need, through direct communication with EDD, going forward.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>So what's changing at EDD around multilingual support?\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>According to \u003ca href=\"https://edd.ca.gov/About_EDD/pdf/news-22-011.pdf\">a press release from EDD\u003c/a>, the agency will expand the number of dedicated phone lines with multilingual agents and the spectrum of written translations for online resources and applications.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\"Effective immediately, EDD is required to provide real-time oral interpretation over the phone, so when claimants call EDD … it has to get an interpreter on the line in the language the claimant needs so that they can really communicate,\" said Winnie Kao, senior counsel at \u003ca href=\"https://www.advancingjustice-alc.org/\">Advancing Justice — Asian Law Caucus\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>If EDD is unable to provide an agent with the needed language skills immediately, Kao said the agency is required to call the claimant back with the requested interpreter within five business days, though there are extra barriers that come up with these callbacks that are worth acknowledging.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The advocates KQED interviewed confirmed that people who struggle with language barriers also are often less likely to have good access to the technological tools, like reliable internet or smartphones, that can make getting through to EDD easier.\u003c/p>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\n\u003cp>EDD also has agreed to establish a multilingual advisory board. Lundin of California Rural Legal Assistance says the positive thing about this aspect of the agreement is that \"it really recognizes that this is a professional area. This is a whole profession, providing language services, and it's complex and it warrants investment and dedicated staff.\"\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\"It's not something that somebody could do in their free time on top of other responsibilities that they have at the agency,\" said Lundin.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Advocates hope that this step from EDD can serve as a model for other state agencies to learn how to provide more meaningful language access going forward.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\"I think it's worth noting that these state agencies are required by law to provide meaningful language access,\" noted Kao. This requirement extends to \"all Californians, including these claimants, who are entitled to these benefits, that pay into these benefits,\" Kao said, emphasizing how people \"desperately need these benefits in time of crisis.\"\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\"This isn't something extra. It's not like a charitable thing. It's a legal mandate,\" said Kao.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://lafla.org/press-release/ca-edd-language-access-agreement/\">Find details of the upcoming changes to EDD on LAFLA's site\u003c/a>, in English, Spanish, Tagalog, Arabic, Chinese (simplified and traditional), Dari, Farsi, Hindi, Japanese, Khmer, Korean, Punjabi, Russian, Thai and Vietnamese.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>If you're seeking help with unemployment insurance claims, you can call EDD's Unemployment Customer Service Center (open 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. PT, seven days a week except state holidays). Starting March 3, these hours will change to 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. PT, Monday through Friday.\u003c/p>\n\u003cul>\n\u003cli>English and Spanish: (800) 300-5616\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>Cantonese: (800) 547-3506\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>Mandarin: (866) 303-0706\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>Vietnamese: (800) 547-2058\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>California Relay Service (711): Provide the UI number — (800) 300-5616 — to the operator\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>TTY: (800) 815-9387\u003c/li>\n\u003c/ul>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"content": "\u003cp>A new state policy may require nearly 900,000 Californians to return their unemployment benefits because they may not have been working or looking for work. But some researchers worry the clawback campaign could force people with lower incomes to pay back thousands of dollars they no longer have.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The state Economic Development Department began issuing notifications of the proof-of-work requirement last month to one-third of California’s 2.9 million Pandemic Unemployment Assistance recipients. The federal program, which ran from March 2020 and ended in September, was aimed at helping people who don’t usually qualify for unemployment benefits because they are freelancers or small-business owners.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The state is asking them to prove, retroactively, that they were working, or planning to work, prior to filing their unemployment claim. If they can’t provide documentation, they would be ineligible and asked to give the benefits back.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[aside postID=\"news_11888843\" hero=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2021/09/EDD-UNEMPLOYMENT-1020x680.jpg\"]A full repayment could be over $32,000 if a recipient received full benefits throughout the program. In addition, if a claimant offered false information, the state could impose a 30% penalty. Some experts are now suggesting giving recipients a pass even if they can’t prove their eligibility.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We should be saying, ‘Look, if you got unemployment insurance benefits during that time, you’re fine,’” said Chris Hoene, executive director of the left-leaning California Budget and Policy Center based in Sacramento.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“If the concern is fraudulent claims,” he added, “then do the work to fix the administration of the system” instead of requiring recipients to prove they qualified for the benefits.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It’s not clear where lawmakers stand. Democratic Assemblymember Tom Daly of Anaheim, chair of the Assembly Insurance Committee, which has oversight of the EDD, did not return a request for comment. Assemblymember Chad Mayes of Yucca Valley, an independent serving as vice chair of the committee, also didn’t respond.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The chair and vice chair of the Senate Labor, Public Employment and Retirement Committee — Democrat Dave Cortese of San José and Republican Rosilicie Ochoa Bogh of Yucaipa — also did not respond to requests for comment.\u003cbr>\n[ad fullwidth]\u003cbr>\nThe EDD noted that the repayment policy is a federal requirement, passed by Congress in the Continued Assistance for Unemployment Workers Act in 2020. EDD acknowledges it can waive repayment if the overpayment was not the recipient’s fault or not fraudulent and if repayment would cause extraordinary hardship.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The new policy is an attempt to claw back \u003ca href=\"https://apnews.com/article/business-california-5ec16ebe5b5982a9531a7a3d5a45e93c\">an estimated $20 billion lost to fraudulent claims in California\u003c/a>. But McGregor Scott, a former U.S. attorney who has been leading a state investigation into unemployment fraud, \u003ca href=\"https://www.sacbee.com/news/california/article256487486.html\">doesn’t believe EDD’s repayment policy will recover much\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[pullquote align=\"right\" size=\"medium\" citation=\"Chris Hoene, California Budget and Policy Center\"]‘If the concern is fraudulent claims, then do the work to fix the administration of the system.’[/pullquote]The state’s immense loss came after EDD, inundated with unemployment claims early in the pandemic, began expediting the process by waiving a proof-of-work requirement. Investigators have said the rollback allowed organized crime and incarcerated people to siphon money from the state through fraudulent claims.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Recipients who receive EDD notices must use \u003ca href=\"https://edd.ca.gov/about_edd/coronavirus-2019/pandemic-unemployment-assistance.htm#SelfEmployment\">pay stubs, tax returns, business licenses or job offer letters\u003c/a> to prove they were employed or planned to be employed in the lead-up to filing their claim.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Those who filed on or after Jan. 31 have only 21 days to send documentation. Those who filed before that date, and received a payment after Dec. 27, 2020, have 90 days to comply.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We probably need to implement this with compassion,” said Jesse Rothstein, a professor of public policy and economics at UC Berkeley. “We won’t be able to collect in every case.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[aside label ='Related Coverage' tag='economy']Even before the pandemic, \u003ca href=\"https://www.unitedwaysca.org/realcost\">nearly 1 in 3 Californian households struggled to pay for basic necessities\u003c/a>, according to the United Ways of California. During the pandemic, a report from the Ludwig Institute for Shared Economic Prosperity found that 4.8 million Californians were seeking, but unable to find, full-time work that paid a living wage.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A recent report by Tipping Point Community, a nonprofit focused on alleviating poverty in the Bay Area, \u003ca href=\"https://www.mercurynews.com/2021/12/13/covid-didnt-increase-poverty-in-the-bay-area-new-report-says/\">estimated that 200,000 of the region’s residents were kept out of poverty\u003c/a> because of expanded support from government and charitable organizations.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Without further bold action, we risk a ‘return to normal’ in terms of durable poverty and inequality,” said Tipping Point’s chief executive, Sam Cobbs. “We cannot afford to take that step backwards.”\u003cbr>\n[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>A new state policy may require nearly 900,000 Californians to return their unemployment benefits because they may not have been working or looking for work. But some researchers worry the clawback campaign could force people with lower incomes to pay back thousands of dollars they no longer have.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The state Economic Development Department began issuing notifications of the proof-of-work requirement last month to one-third of California’s 2.9 million Pandemic Unemployment Assistance recipients. The federal program, which ran from March 2020 and ended in September, was aimed at helping people who don’t usually qualify for unemployment benefits because they are freelancers or small-business owners.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The state is asking them to prove, retroactively, that they were working, or planning to work, prior to filing their unemployment claim. If they can’t provide documentation, they would be ineligible and asked to give the benefits back.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>A full repayment could be over $32,000 if a recipient received full benefits throughout the program. In addition, if a claimant offered false information, the state could impose a 30% penalty. Some experts are now suggesting giving recipients a pass even if they can’t prove their eligibility.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We should be saying, ‘Look, if you got unemployment insurance benefits during that time, you’re fine,’” said Chris Hoene, executive director of the left-leaning California Budget and Policy Center based in Sacramento.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“If the concern is fraudulent claims,” he added, “then do the work to fix the administration of the system” instead of requiring recipients to prove they qualified for the benefits.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It’s not clear where lawmakers stand. Democratic Assemblymember Tom Daly of Anaheim, chair of the Assembly Insurance Committee, which has oversight of the EDD, did not return a request for comment. Assemblymember Chad Mayes of Yucca Valley, an independent serving as vice chair of the committee, also didn’t respond.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The chair and vice chair of the Senate Labor, Public Employment and Retirement Committee — Democrat Dave Cortese of San José and Republican Rosilicie Ochoa Bogh of Yucaipa — also did not respond to requests for comment.\u003cbr>\n\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cbr>\nThe EDD noted that the repayment policy is a federal requirement, passed by Congress in the Continued Assistance for Unemployment Workers Act in 2020. EDD acknowledges it can waive repayment if the overpayment was not the recipient’s fault or not fraudulent and if repayment would cause extraordinary hardship.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The new policy is an attempt to claw back \u003ca href=\"https://apnews.com/article/business-california-5ec16ebe5b5982a9531a7a3d5a45e93c\">an estimated $20 billion lost to fraudulent claims in California\u003c/a>. But McGregor Scott, a former U.S. attorney who has been leading a state investigation into unemployment fraud, \u003ca href=\"https://www.sacbee.com/news/california/article256487486.html\">doesn’t believe EDD’s repayment policy will recover much\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>The state’s immense loss came after EDD, inundated with unemployment claims early in the pandemic, began expediting the process by waiving a proof-of-work requirement. Investigators have said the rollback allowed organized crime and incarcerated people to siphon money from the state through fraudulent claims.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Recipients who receive EDD notices must use \u003ca href=\"https://edd.ca.gov/about_edd/coronavirus-2019/pandemic-unemployment-assistance.htm#SelfEmployment\">pay stubs, tax returns, business licenses or job offer letters\u003c/a> to prove they were employed or planned to be employed in the lead-up to filing their claim.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Those who filed on or after Jan. 31 have only 21 days to send documentation. Those who filed before that date, and received a payment after Dec. 27, 2020, have 90 days to comply.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We probably need to implement this with compassion,” said Jesse Rothstein, a professor of public policy and economics at UC Berkeley. “We won’t be able to collect in every case.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>Even before the pandemic, \u003ca href=\"https://www.unitedwaysca.org/realcost\">nearly 1 in 3 Californian households struggled to pay for basic necessities\u003c/a>, according to the United Ways of California. During the pandemic, a report from the Ludwig Institute for Shared Economic Prosperity found that 4.8 million Californians were seeking, but unable to find, full-time work that paid a living wage.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A recent report by Tipping Point Community, a nonprofit focused on alleviating poverty in the Bay Area, \u003ca href=\"https://www.mercurynews.com/2021/12/13/covid-didnt-increase-poverty-in-the-bay-area-new-report-says/\">estimated that 200,000 of the region’s residents were kept out of poverty\u003c/a> because of expanded support from government and charitable organizations.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Without further bold action, we risk a ‘return to normal’ in terms of durable poverty and inequality,” said Tipping Point’s chief executive, Sam Cobbs. “We cannot afford to take that step backwards.”\u003cbr>\n\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"slug": "varios-beneficios-federales-por-desempleo-ya-se-acabaron-cuales-opciones-todavia-existen-en-california",
"title": "Varios beneficios federales por desempleo ya se acabaron. ¿Cuáles opciones todavía existen en California?",
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"headTitle": "Varios beneficios federales por desempleo ya se acabaron. ¿Cuáles opciones todavía existen en California? | KQED",
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"content": "\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11888843/claiming-unemployment-in-california-your-options-now-that-pandemic-federal-benefits-have-ended\">\u003cem>Read in English\u003c/em>\u003c/a>\u003c/p>\n\u003cul>\n\u003cli>Ir directamente a: \u003ca href=\"#beneficios\">\u003cstrong>Dónde encontrar ayuda si se terminaron sus beneficios federales por la pandemia\u003c/strong>\u003c/a>\u003c/li>\n\u003c/ul>\n\u003cp>A principios de septiembre, alrededor de 2.2 millones de \u003ca href=\"https://edd.ca.gov/About_EDD/pdf/news-21-53.pdf\">californianos perdieron los beneficios federales establecidos para ayudarles a superar la pandemia\u003c/a>(disponible sólo en inglés).\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Pero\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11888075/empty-savings-damaged-health-for-pandemic-unemployed-recovery-can-be-a-long-road\">mucha gente todavía no ha encontrado trabajo\u003c/a>. Algunos también se encuentran en circunstancias que no les permiten ingresar de nuevo al mercado laboral,\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11887707/chinatowns-communal-housing-residents-organize-to-keep-their-students-at-home\"> como no querer enviar de nuevo a la escuela a sus hijos que aún no han recibido la vacuna contra COVID-19\u003c/a> o temor de contraer el virus en su lugar de trabajo.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Si está leyendo esto porque sus beneficios federales por la pandemia vencieron a principios de septiembre, debemos decirle por adelantado: no hay muchas opciones disponibles para usted en este momento.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Pero si usted trabajó en algún momento durante la pandemia, existen algunas cosas que puede hacer para maximizar los beneficios que puede reclamar. No menos importante es que algunos californianos todavía califican al desempleo regular y deben seguir certificándose para los beneficios, según el Departamento de Desarrollo del Empleo (EDD por sus siglas en inglés).\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Y si aún no lo ha hecho, existe una serie de programas estatales a los que usted puede tener derecho para ayudarle a cubrir ciertas carencias en este momento.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Siga leyendo para conocer nuestra guía que le ayudará a averiguar cuáles caminos tiene abiertos.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch3>\u003cstrong>¿Cuáles beneficios de desempleo han expirado realmente?\u003c/strong>\u003c/h3>\n\u003cp>El 4 de septiembre terminaron las siguientes prestaciones federales de desempleo establecidas por la Ley CARES:\u003c/p>\n\u003cul>\n\u003cli>\u003ca href=\"https://edd.ca.gov/about_edd/coronavirus-2019/pandemic-unemployment-assistance-espanol.htm\">Asistencia de Desempleo por la Pandemia\u003c/a> (PUA por sus siglas en inglés): El programa federal que apoyaba a los propietarios de negocios, contratistas independientes y trabajadores por cuenta propia. (Si sólo recibió un formulario de impuestos 1099, es probable que este fuera el programa en el que estaba).\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>\u003ca href=\"https://edd.ca.gov/about_edd/coronavirus-2019/cares-act-espanol.htm#collapseRunout\">Compensación por Desempleo de Emergencia por la Pandemia\u003c/a> (PEUC por sus siglas en inglés): El programa federal para las personas que estaban en el desempleo regular, pero agotaron esos fondos.\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>\u003ca href=\"https://edd.ca.gov/about_edd/coronavirus-2019/cares-act-espanol.htm#collapseAboutPAC\">Compensación Adicional por la Pandemia\u003c/a> (PAC por sus siglas en inglés) (también conocida como Subsidio Federal de Desempleo por la Pandemia, o FPUC por sus siglas en inglés): El programa que pagó $300 en compensación federal por desempleo además del monto del beneficio semanal actual de un reclamante para las semanas de desempleo entre el 27 de diciembre de 2020 y el 4 de septiembre de 2021.\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>\u003ca href=\"https://edd.ca.gov/about_edd/coronavirus-2019/cares-act-espanol.htm#collapseMEUC\">Compensación por Desempleo para las Personas con Ingresos Mixtos\u003c/a> (MEUC por sus siglas en inglés): El programa que pagaba $100 semanales adicionales en prestaciones de desempleo complementarias a los solicitantes que recibían beneficios regulares de desempleo o de prórroga y obtenían ingresos por cuenta propia en el año anterior a su solicitud.\u003c/li>\n\u003c/ul>\n\u003cp>También estaba disponible la \u003ca href=\"https://www.edd.ca.gov/about_edd/coronavirus-2019/fed-ed-espanol.htm\">Extensión Federal-Estatal\u003c/a> (FED-ED por sus siglas en inglés), el programa federal para las personas que habían agotado tanto el seguro de desempleo ordinario, como los fondos del PEUC. Algunas personas tenían semanas restantes de elegibilidad FED-ED, pero estos pagos también expiraron el 11 de septiembre.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch3>\u003cstrong>Por qué se crearon estos beneficios federales y a quiénes no están incluidos\u003c/strong>\u003c/h3>\n\u003cp>Estas prestaciones por el desempleo provocado por la pandemia, los cuales ya han expirado, se crearon como pagos temporales de emergencia y prórrogas, y algunas de ellas estaban destinadas a cubrir las brechas de las personas que no cumplen los requisitos para el desempleo ordinario, como los trabajadores autónomos e independientes.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>En el período previo a su expiración, algunos activistas laborales señalaron que la falta de redes de apoyo para trabajadores sin empleo recalca las evidentes grietas en el sistema que todavía necesitan ser llenadas.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“‘¿Por qué está bien que esa gente quede excluida del programa cuando no es una pandemia?’ es una pregunta que debemos hacernos”, dijo Rebecca Dixon, directora ejecutiva del\u003ca href=\"https://www.nelp.org/\"> Proyecto Nacional de Derecho Laboral\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Y si podemos averiguar cómo hacer que funcione durante una pandemia para protegerlos, tenemos que protegerlos todo el tiempo”.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch3>\u003cstrong>Cuento con beneficios de desempleo regular. ¿En qué situación me encuentro?\u003c/strong>\u003c/h3>\n\u003cp>Según un comunicado del EDD de principios de septiembre, la agencia \u003ca href=\"https://edd.ca.gov/About_EDD/pdf/news-21-53.pdf\">calcula que alrededor de 500 mil californianos siguen recibiendo el seguro de desempleo estatal\u003c/a>, sólo que sin el suplemento federal de $300 dólares del PAC que solían recibir.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>El EDD utiliza lo que ellos llaman un “período base” para calcular sus beneficios y si usted tiene derecho a los beneficios en general.\u003ca href=\"https://www.edd.ca.gov/pdf_pub_ctr/de8714ab.pdf\"> Consulte los requisitos de ingresos para establecer una reclamación válida\u003c/a> (sólo en inglés).\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[pullquote align='right' ]‘Las personas que presentaron solicitudes al principio de la pandemia, pero que no han vuelto a trabajar en absoluto, no van a poder presentar una nueva solicitud de desempleo ordinario.’[/pullquote]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Una nota importante es que las personas que presentaron solicitudes al principio de la pandemia pero que no han vuelto a trabajar en absoluto no van a poder presentar una nueva solicitud de desempleo regular, dice Daniela Urban, directora ejecutiva del\u003ca href=\"https://www.rightscenter.org/\"> Centro para los Derechos de los Trabajadores en Sacramento\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Esto se debe a que “no han tenido ningún ingreso nuevo, independientemente de la antigüedad que puedan tener en su período base”, explica ella.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11892660\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-11892660 size-medium\" title=\"Cottonbro/Pexels\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2021/10/HAND-ON-LAPTOP-ON-DESK-NEXT-TO-WINDOW-HERE-800x533.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2021/10/HAND-ON-LAPTOP-ON-DESK-NEXT-TO-WINDOW-HERE-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2021/10/HAND-ON-LAPTOP-ON-DESK-NEXT-TO-WINDOW-HERE-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2021/10/HAND-ON-LAPTOP-ON-DESK-NEXT-TO-WINDOW-HERE-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2021/10/HAND-ON-LAPTOP-ON-DESK-NEXT-TO-WINDOW-HERE-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2021/10/HAND-ON-LAPTOP-ON-DESK-NEXT-TO-WINDOW-HERE.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">¿Qué debe hacer si le han dejado de dar el subsidio de desempleo por la pandemia? \u003ccite>(Cottonbro/Pexels)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003ch3>Si califico a una nueva solicitud para beneficios de desempleo, ¿qué debo saber?\u003c/h3>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Sea estratégico con el tiempo\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Si ha ganado lo suficiente desde su última solicitud para tener derecho a una nueva, Urban le recomienda que piense estratégicamente en el momento de presentarla, para maximizar la cantidad y la duración de su nueva ronda de beneficios.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>¿Una razón importante para hacerlo? Urban dice que el EDD nunca incluirá el trimestre de ganancias en el que usted presenta su solicitud cuando calcula la cantidad de su solicitud.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Dado a que muchas personas lograron conseguir trabajo en el verano antes de que la variante delta se afianzó, existe una buena probabilidad de que usted pueda tener ganancias en el tercer trimestre de 2021, que va entre el 1 de julio y el 30 de septiembre.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Por lo tanto, si presenta la solicitud en octubre, al comienzo del cuarto trimestre, el EDD tendrá en cuenta esos ingresos del tercer trimestre a la hora de calcular sus prestaciones de desempleo.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Considere si sus ingresos contarán\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“La cantidad que recibe en el desempleo se basa tanto en su trimestre más alto de ganancias, como en todas sus ganancias durante el período base. Así que, como muchos solicitantes no trabajaron durante gran parte de 2020, puede que tengan un trimestre [más alto] de ganancias recientemente, como el trimestre más reciente o el inmediatamente anterior”, dijo Urban.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Las personas que han vuelto a trabajar recientemente, pero que han sido despedidas de nuevo, también deben tener en cuenta este hecho a la hora de presentar la solicitud, dice Urban. Esto se debe a que, si uno acaba de perder un nuevo empleo, sus ingresos de ese trimestre no cuentan.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Así que cuando estamos al final de un trimestre, especialmente como ahora, si perdió su empleo recientemente y la mayor parte de su nuevo trabajo fue sólo en ese trimestre, sólo van a utilizar las ganancias del trimestre anterior a ese y tal vez incluso dos trimestres antes de eso, dependiendo de lo que sus otras ganancias fueron, con el fin de calcular sus ganancias del período base”, dijo Urban.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Recuerde que ya no hay prórrogas\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Esperar a presentar la solicitud tiene otras ventajas, además de hacer más probable que se tengan en cuenta los ingresos más elevados de la gente, “porque ahora que no hay prórrogas, lo máximo que se puede obtener son las 26 semanas dentro de un periodo de 52 semanas”, subraya Urban.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Así que, al retrasar el inicio de eso, se retrasa el periodo de tiempo en el que se empiezan a recibir las prestaciones. Pero eso amplía el periodo de tiempo en el que puede cobrar esas prestaciones si sigue en el paro”, dijo ella.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>En resumen: cuando decida presentar la solicitud, considere cómo puede equilibrar la inclusión de los periodos en los que ha ganado más, y tenga en cuenta que cuanto más espere para presentarla, más meses (y, con suerte, más cerca estemos de una recuperación económica más completa) durarán sus prestaciones.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch3>\u003ca id=\"beneficios\">\u003c/a>Dónde encontrar ayuda si ha perdido sus beneficios de desempleo por la pandemia\u003c/h3>\n\u003cp>El EDD ha compartido los siguientes servicios para las personas que necesitan apoyo adicional durante esta transición.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Tenga en cuenta: Algunas personas desempleadas han reportado dificultades para asegurar los beneficios públicos si tenían problemas de robo de identidad relacionados con el desempleo. Estar desempleado también puede interferir con la capacidad de presentar declaraciones de impuestos, lo que afectará el acceso al pago del estímulo.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://www.getcalfresh.org/?new_locale=es\">\u003cb>CalFresh\u003c/b>\u003c/a>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>El programa de cupones de alimentos de California (SNAP por sus siglas en inglés) ofrece más de $200 dólares al mes en ayuda alimentaria.\u003ca href=\"https://www.getcalfresh.org/?new_locale=es\"> Inscríbase en CalFresh en línea\u003c/a> o llame al (877) 847-3663.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://housing.ca.gov/\">\u003cb>Housing Is Key\u003c/b>\u003c/a>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Información y apoyo sobre el alquiler y los servicios públicos del Estado. Inscríbase a través de \u003ci>Housing Is Key\u003c/i> \u003ca href=\"https://housing.ca.gov/\">en línea\u003c/a> o llame al (833) 430-2122.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://www.coveredca.com/espanol/\">\u003cb>Covered California o Medi-Cal\u003c/b>\u003c/a>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>El EDD señala que “los californianos que recibieron seguro de desempleo en 2021 pueden ser elegibles para la mejor cobertura de \u003ci>Covered California\u003c/i> por 1 dólar al mes. Las personas que ya están inscritas en Medi-Cal o en un plan de salud de \u003ci>Covered California,\u003c/i> deben reportar cualquier pérdida de beneficios de desempleo a la agencia porque esto reducirá los costos de la cobertura médica.” Vea más sobre \u003ca href=\"https://www.coveredca.com/espanol/\">Covered California o Medi-Cal en línea\u003c/a> o llame al (800) 300-1506.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://benefitscal.com/\">\u003cb>BenefitsCal\u003c/b>\u003c/a>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>El programa de \u003ci>BenefitsCal\u003c/i> ofrece una forma de solicitar CalFresh, CalWORKs, Medi-Cal, CMSP (Programa de Servicios Médicos del Condado), CalFresh para catástrofes o GA/GR (Asistencia General o Ayuda General). Este sitio sustituye a C4Yourself, YourBenefitsNow y MyBenefits CalWIN.\u003ca href=\"https://benefitscal.com/\"> Llene la solicitud a través de \u003ci>BenefitsCal\u003c/i> en línea\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://www.ftb.ca.gov/about-ftb/newsroom/golden-state-stimulus/index.html\">\u003cb>Estímulo del Estado Dorado\u003c/b>\u003c/a>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Los declarantes de impuestos elegibles pueden\u003ca href=\"https://www.ftb.ca.gov/about-ftb/newsroom/golden-state-stimulus/index.html\"> solicitar el Estímulo del Estado Dorado\u003c/a>.\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11862122/how-to-get-your-california-stimulus-check-and-other-tax-credits-youre-entitled-to\"> Lea más en KQED sobre el Estímulo del Estado Dorado\u003c/a> (solo en inglés).\u003c/p>\n\u003chr>\n\u003cp>[ad floatright]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>Este artículo fue traducido por la periodista, \u003ca href=\"https://twitter.com/soytapatia\">María Peña\u003c/a> y editado por el periodista, \u003ca>Carlos Cabrera-Lomelí\u003c/a>.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\n",
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"excerpt": "Pese a que ya se acabaron muchos beneficios de desempleo a nivel federal, todavía hay algunas opciones para quienes no tienen trabajo y buscan ayuda económica.",
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"title": "Varios beneficios federales por desempleo ya se acabaron. ¿Cuáles opciones todavía existen en California? | KQED",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11888843/claiming-unemployment-in-california-your-options-now-that-pandemic-federal-benefits-have-ended\">\u003cem>Read in English\u003c/em>\u003c/a>\u003c/p>\n\u003cul>\n\u003cli>Ir directamente a: \u003ca href=\"#beneficios\">\u003cstrong>Dónde encontrar ayuda si se terminaron sus beneficios federales por la pandemia\u003c/strong>\u003c/a>\u003c/li>\n\u003c/ul>\n\u003cp>A principios de septiembre, alrededor de 2.2 millones de \u003ca href=\"https://edd.ca.gov/About_EDD/pdf/news-21-53.pdf\">californianos perdieron los beneficios federales establecidos para ayudarles a superar la pandemia\u003c/a>(disponible sólo en inglés).\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Pero\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11888075/empty-savings-damaged-health-for-pandemic-unemployed-recovery-can-be-a-long-road\">mucha gente todavía no ha encontrado trabajo\u003c/a>. Algunos también se encuentran en circunstancias que no les permiten ingresar de nuevo al mercado laboral,\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11887707/chinatowns-communal-housing-residents-organize-to-keep-their-students-at-home\"> como no querer enviar de nuevo a la escuela a sus hijos que aún no han recibido la vacuna contra COVID-19\u003c/a> o temor de contraer el virus en su lugar de trabajo.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Si está leyendo esto porque sus beneficios federales por la pandemia vencieron a principios de septiembre, debemos decirle por adelantado: no hay muchas opciones disponibles para usted en este momento.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Pero si usted trabajó en algún momento durante la pandemia, existen algunas cosas que puede hacer para maximizar los beneficios que puede reclamar. No menos importante es que algunos californianos todavía califican al desempleo regular y deben seguir certificándose para los beneficios, según el Departamento de Desarrollo del Empleo (EDD por sus siglas en inglés).\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Y si aún no lo ha hecho, existe una serie de programas estatales a los que usted puede tener derecho para ayudarle a cubrir ciertas carencias en este momento.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Siga leyendo para conocer nuestra guía que le ayudará a averiguar cuáles caminos tiene abiertos.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch3>\u003cstrong>¿Cuáles beneficios de desempleo han expirado realmente?\u003c/strong>\u003c/h3>\n\u003cp>El 4 de septiembre terminaron las siguientes prestaciones federales de desempleo establecidas por la Ley CARES:\u003c/p>\n\u003cul>\n\u003cli>\u003ca href=\"https://edd.ca.gov/about_edd/coronavirus-2019/pandemic-unemployment-assistance-espanol.htm\">Asistencia de Desempleo por la Pandemia\u003c/a> (PUA por sus siglas en inglés): El programa federal que apoyaba a los propietarios de negocios, contratistas independientes y trabajadores por cuenta propia. (Si sólo recibió un formulario de impuestos 1099, es probable que este fuera el programa en el que estaba).\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>\u003ca href=\"https://edd.ca.gov/about_edd/coronavirus-2019/cares-act-espanol.htm#collapseRunout\">Compensación por Desempleo de Emergencia por la Pandemia\u003c/a> (PEUC por sus siglas en inglés): El programa federal para las personas que estaban en el desempleo regular, pero agotaron esos fondos.\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>\u003ca href=\"https://edd.ca.gov/about_edd/coronavirus-2019/cares-act-espanol.htm#collapseAboutPAC\">Compensación Adicional por la Pandemia\u003c/a> (PAC por sus siglas en inglés) (también conocida como Subsidio Federal de Desempleo por la Pandemia, o FPUC por sus siglas en inglés): El programa que pagó $300 en compensación federal por desempleo además del monto del beneficio semanal actual de un reclamante para las semanas de desempleo entre el 27 de diciembre de 2020 y el 4 de septiembre de 2021.\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>\u003ca href=\"https://edd.ca.gov/about_edd/coronavirus-2019/cares-act-espanol.htm#collapseMEUC\">Compensación por Desempleo para las Personas con Ingresos Mixtos\u003c/a> (MEUC por sus siglas en inglés): El programa que pagaba $100 semanales adicionales en prestaciones de desempleo complementarias a los solicitantes que recibían beneficios regulares de desempleo o de prórroga y obtenían ingresos por cuenta propia en el año anterior a su solicitud.\u003c/li>\n\u003c/ul>\n\u003cp>También estaba disponible la \u003ca href=\"https://www.edd.ca.gov/about_edd/coronavirus-2019/fed-ed-espanol.htm\">Extensión Federal-Estatal\u003c/a> (FED-ED por sus siglas en inglés), el programa federal para las personas que habían agotado tanto el seguro de desempleo ordinario, como los fondos del PEUC. Algunas personas tenían semanas restantes de elegibilidad FED-ED, pero estos pagos también expiraron el 11 de septiembre.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch3>\u003cstrong>Por qué se crearon estos beneficios federales y a quiénes no están incluidos\u003c/strong>\u003c/h3>\n\u003cp>Estas prestaciones por el desempleo provocado por la pandemia, los cuales ya han expirado, se crearon como pagos temporales de emergencia y prórrogas, y algunas de ellas estaban destinadas a cubrir las brechas de las personas que no cumplen los requisitos para el desempleo ordinario, como los trabajadores autónomos e independientes.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>En el período previo a su expiración, algunos activistas laborales señalaron que la falta de redes de apoyo para trabajadores sin empleo recalca las evidentes grietas en el sistema que todavía necesitan ser llenadas.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“‘¿Por qué está bien que esa gente quede excluida del programa cuando no es una pandemia?’ es una pregunta que debemos hacernos”, dijo Rebecca Dixon, directora ejecutiva del\u003ca href=\"https://www.nelp.org/\"> Proyecto Nacional de Derecho Laboral\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Y si podemos averiguar cómo hacer que funcione durante una pandemia para protegerlos, tenemos que protegerlos todo el tiempo”.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch3>\u003cstrong>Cuento con beneficios de desempleo regular. ¿En qué situación me encuentro?\u003c/strong>\u003c/h3>\n\u003cp>Según un comunicado del EDD de principios de septiembre, la agencia \u003ca href=\"https://edd.ca.gov/About_EDD/pdf/news-21-53.pdf\">calcula que alrededor de 500 mil californianos siguen recibiendo el seguro de desempleo estatal\u003c/a>, sólo que sin el suplemento federal de $300 dólares del PAC que solían recibir.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>El EDD utiliza lo que ellos llaman un “período base” para calcular sus beneficios y si usted tiene derecho a los beneficios en general.\u003ca href=\"https://www.edd.ca.gov/pdf_pub_ctr/de8714ab.pdf\"> Consulte los requisitos de ingresos para establecer una reclamación válida\u003c/a> (sólo en inglés).\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "‘Las personas que presentaron solicitudes al principio de la pandemia, pero que no han vuelto a trabajar en absoluto, no van a poder presentar una nueva solicitud de desempleo ordinario.’",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Una nota importante es que las personas que presentaron solicitudes al principio de la pandemia pero que no han vuelto a trabajar en absoluto no van a poder presentar una nueva solicitud de desempleo regular, dice Daniela Urban, directora ejecutiva del\u003ca href=\"https://www.rightscenter.org/\"> Centro para los Derechos de los Trabajadores en Sacramento\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Esto se debe a que “no han tenido ningún ingreso nuevo, independientemente de la antigüedad que puedan tener en su período base”, explica ella.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11892660\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-11892660 size-medium\" title=\"Cottonbro/Pexels\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2021/10/HAND-ON-LAPTOP-ON-DESK-NEXT-TO-WINDOW-HERE-800x533.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2021/10/HAND-ON-LAPTOP-ON-DESK-NEXT-TO-WINDOW-HERE-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2021/10/HAND-ON-LAPTOP-ON-DESK-NEXT-TO-WINDOW-HERE-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2021/10/HAND-ON-LAPTOP-ON-DESK-NEXT-TO-WINDOW-HERE-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2021/10/HAND-ON-LAPTOP-ON-DESK-NEXT-TO-WINDOW-HERE-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2021/10/HAND-ON-LAPTOP-ON-DESK-NEXT-TO-WINDOW-HERE.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">¿Qué debe hacer si le han dejado de dar el subsidio de desempleo por la pandemia? \u003ccite>(Cottonbro/Pexels)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003ch3>Si califico a una nueva solicitud para beneficios de desempleo, ¿qué debo saber?\u003c/h3>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Sea estratégico con el tiempo\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Si ha ganado lo suficiente desde su última solicitud para tener derecho a una nueva, Urban le recomienda que piense estratégicamente en el momento de presentarla, para maximizar la cantidad y la duración de su nueva ronda de beneficios.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>¿Una razón importante para hacerlo? Urban dice que el EDD nunca incluirá el trimestre de ganancias en el que usted presenta su solicitud cuando calcula la cantidad de su solicitud.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Dado a que muchas personas lograron conseguir trabajo en el verano antes de que la variante delta se afianzó, existe una buena probabilidad de que usted pueda tener ganancias en el tercer trimestre de 2021, que va entre el 1 de julio y el 30 de septiembre.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Por lo tanto, si presenta la solicitud en octubre, al comienzo del cuarto trimestre, el EDD tendrá en cuenta esos ingresos del tercer trimestre a la hora de calcular sus prestaciones de desempleo.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Considere si sus ingresos contarán\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“La cantidad que recibe en el desempleo se basa tanto en su trimestre más alto de ganancias, como en todas sus ganancias durante el período base. Así que, como muchos solicitantes no trabajaron durante gran parte de 2020, puede que tengan un trimestre [más alto] de ganancias recientemente, como el trimestre más reciente o el inmediatamente anterior”, dijo Urban.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Las personas que han vuelto a trabajar recientemente, pero que han sido despedidas de nuevo, también deben tener en cuenta este hecho a la hora de presentar la solicitud, dice Urban. Esto se debe a que, si uno acaba de perder un nuevo empleo, sus ingresos de ese trimestre no cuentan.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Así que cuando estamos al final de un trimestre, especialmente como ahora, si perdió su empleo recientemente y la mayor parte de su nuevo trabajo fue sólo en ese trimestre, sólo van a utilizar las ganancias del trimestre anterior a ese y tal vez incluso dos trimestres antes de eso, dependiendo de lo que sus otras ganancias fueron, con el fin de calcular sus ganancias del período base”, dijo Urban.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Recuerde que ya no hay prórrogas\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Esperar a presentar la solicitud tiene otras ventajas, además de hacer más probable que se tengan en cuenta los ingresos más elevados de la gente, “porque ahora que no hay prórrogas, lo máximo que se puede obtener son las 26 semanas dentro de un periodo de 52 semanas”, subraya Urban.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Así que, al retrasar el inicio de eso, se retrasa el periodo de tiempo en el que se empiezan a recibir las prestaciones. Pero eso amplía el periodo de tiempo en el que puede cobrar esas prestaciones si sigue en el paro”, dijo ella.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>En resumen: cuando decida presentar la solicitud, considere cómo puede equilibrar la inclusión de los periodos en los que ha ganado más, y tenga en cuenta que cuanto más espere para presentarla, más meses (y, con suerte, más cerca estemos de una recuperación económica más completa) durarán sus prestaciones.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch3>\u003ca id=\"beneficios\">\u003c/a>Dónde encontrar ayuda si ha perdido sus beneficios de desempleo por la pandemia\u003c/h3>\n\u003cp>El EDD ha compartido los siguientes servicios para las personas que necesitan apoyo adicional durante esta transición.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Tenga en cuenta: Algunas personas desempleadas han reportado dificultades para asegurar los beneficios públicos si tenían problemas de robo de identidad relacionados con el desempleo. Estar desempleado también puede interferir con la capacidad de presentar declaraciones de impuestos, lo que afectará el acceso al pago del estímulo.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://www.getcalfresh.org/?new_locale=es\">\u003cb>CalFresh\u003c/b>\u003c/a>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>El programa de cupones de alimentos de California (SNAP por sus siglas en inglés) ofrece más de $200 dólares al mes en ayuda alimentaria.\u003ca href=\"https://www.getcalfresh.org/?new_locale=es\"> Inscríbase en CalFresh en línea\u003c/a> o llame al (877) 847-3663.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://housing.ca.gov/\">\u003cb>Housing Is Key\u003c/b>\u003c/a>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Información y apoyo sobre el alquiler y los servicios públicos del Estado. Inscríbase a través de \u003ci>Housing Is Key\u003c/i> \u003ca href=\"https://housing.ca.gov/\">en línea\u003c/a> o llame al (833) 430-2122.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://www.coveredca.com/espanol/\">\u003cb>Covered California o Medi-Cal\u003c/b>\u003c/a>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>El EDD señala que “los californianos que recibieron seguro de desempleo en 2021 pueden ser elegibles para la mejor cobertura de \u003ci>Covered California\u003c/i> por 1 dólar al mes. Las personas que ya están inscritas en Medi-Cal o en un plan de salud de \u003ci>Covered California,\u003c/i> deben reportar cualquier pérdida de beneficios de desempleo a la agencia porque esto reducirá los costos de la cobertura médica.” Vea más sobre \u003ca href=\"https://www.coveredca.com/espanol/\">Covered California o Medi-Cal en línea\u003c/a> o llame al (800) 300-1506.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://benefitscal.com/\">\u003cb>BenefitsCal\u003c/b>\u003c/a>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>El programa de \u003ci>BenefitsCal\u003c/i> ofrece una forma de solicitar CalFresh, CalWORKs, Medi-Cal, CMSP (Programa de Servicios Médicos del Condado), CalFresh para catástrofes o GA/GR (Asistencia General o Ayuda General). Este sitio sustituye a C4Yourself, YourBenefitsNow y MyBenefits CalWIN.\u003ca href=\"https://benefitscal.com/\"> Llene la solicitud a través de \u003ci>BenefitsCal\u003c/i> en línea\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://www.ftb.ca.gov/about-ftb/newsroom/golden-state-stimulus/index.html\">\u003cb>Estímulo del Estado Dorado\u003c/b>\u003c/a>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Los declarantes de impuestos elegibles pueden\u003ca href=\"https://www.ftb.ca.gov/about-ftb/newsroom/golden-state-stimulus/index.html\"> solicitar el Estímulo del Estado Dorado\u003c/a>.\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11862122/how-to-get-your-california-stimulus-check-and-other-tax-credits-youre-entitled-to\"> Lea más en KQED sobre el Estímulo del Estado Dorado\u003c/a> (solo en inglés).\u003c/p>\n\u003chr>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>Este artículo fue traducido por la periodista, \u003ca href=\"https://twitter.com/soytapatia\">María Peña\u003c/a> y editado por el periodista, \u003ca>Carlos Cabrera-Lomelí\u003c/a>.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"disqusTitle": "Claiming Unemployment in California: Your Options Now That Pandemic Federal Benefits Have Ended",
"title": "Claiming Unemployment in California: Your Options Now That Pandemic Federal Benefits Have Ended",
"headTitle": "KQED News",
"content": "\u003cul>\n\u003cli>\u003cstrong>Go straight to: \u003ca href=\"#help\">Where to find help if your pandemic federal benefits have ended\u003c/a>\u003c/strong>\u003c/li>\n\u003c/ul>\n\u003cp>Around Labor Day, up to 2.2 million \u003ca href=\"https://edd.ca.gov/About_EDD/pdf/news-21-53.pdf\">Californians lost federal benefits established to help get them through the pandemic\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11888075/empty-savings-damaged-health-for-pandemic-unemployed-recovery-can-be-a-long-road\">plenty of people still haven’t found work\u003c/a>. Some also have circumstances that are keeping them out of the job market, like \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11887707/chinatowns-communal-housing-residents-organize-to-keep-their-students-at-home\">not wanting to send their unvaccinated kids back to school\u003c/a>, or worrying about contracting COVID in the workplace.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>If you're reading this because your pandemic federal benefits expired earlier this month, we should say up-front: there are not a \u003cem>huge\u003c/em> amount of options available to you right now.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But if you have worked at some point during the pandemic, there are a few things you can do to maximize the benefits you can claim. Not least because some Californians are still eligible for regular unemployment and should continue to certify for benefits, according to the Employment Development Department (EDD).\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And if you haven’t, there are still \u003ca href=\"#help\">a number of state programs you may be entitled to, to help bridge certain gaps right now.\u003c/a>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Keep reading for our guide to help you figure the paths open to you.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch3>Which of my unemployment benefits have actually expired?\u003c/h3>\n\u003cp>Back on Sept. 4, the following federal unemployment benefits established by the CARES Act expired:\u003c/p>\n\u003cul>\n\u003cli>\u003cstrong>\u003ca href=\"https://edd.ca.gov/about_edd/coronavirus-2019/cares-act.htm#PUA\">Pandemic Unemployment Assistance\u003c/a>\u003c/strong> (PUA): The federal program that supported business owners, independent contractors and self-employed workers. (If you only got a 1099 tax form, this was likely the program you were on.)\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>\u003cstrong>\u003ca href=\"https://edd.ca.gov/about_edd/coronavirus-2019/cares-act.htm#PEUC\">Pandemic Emergency Unemployment Compensation\u003c/a>\u003c/strong> (PEUC): The federal program for people who were on regular unemployment but exhausted those funds.\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>\u003ca href=\"https://edd.ca.gov/about_edd/coronavirus-2019/cares-act.htm#PAC\">\u003cstrong>Pandemic Additional Compensation\u003c/strong> \u003c/a>(PAC) (also known as Federal Pandemic Unemployment Compensation, or FPUC): The program that paid $300 in federal unemployment compensation on top of a claimant's current weekly benefit amount for weeks of unemployment between December 27, 2020, and September 4, 2021.\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>\u003ca href=\"https://edd.ca.gov/about_edd/coronavirus-2019/cares-act.htm#MEUC\">\u003cstrong>Mixed Earner Unemployment Compensation\u003c/strong>\u003c/a> (MEUC): The program that paid an additional $100 per week in supplemental unemployment benefits to claimants who received regular unemployment or extension benefits and earned self-employment income in the year before their claim.\u003c/li>\n\u003c/ul>\n\u003cp>Also available was \u003ca href=\"https://www.edd.ca.gov/about_edd/coronavirus-2019/fed-ed.htm\">Federal-State Extended Duration \u003c/a>(FED-ED), the federal program for people who had exhausted both regular unemployment insurance and PEUC funds. Some people had remaining weeks of FED-ED eligibility, but these payments also expired Sept. 11.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch3>Why these federal benefits were created, and who's being left out, according to advocates\u003c/h3>\n\u003cp>These now-expired pandemic unemployment benefits were created as temporary emergency payments and extensions, and some of them were intended to bridge gaps for people who don’t \u003cem>qualify\u003c/em> for regular unemployment, like gig workers and the self-employed.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In the lead-up to their expiration, some advocates pointed out that the absence of preexisting unemployment support nets for these workers highlights glaring holes in the system that still need filling.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\"'Why is it OK for those folks to be excluded from the program when it's \u003cem>not\u003c/em> a pandemic?' is a question we need to ask ourselves,\" said Rebecca Dixon, executive director of the National Employment Law Project.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\"And if we can figure out how to make it work during a pandemic to cover them, we need to be covering them all the time.\"\u003c/p>\n\u003ch3>I'm on regular unemployment. Where do I stand?\u003c/h3>\n\u003cp>According to an EDD release from early September, \u003ca href=\"https://edd.ca.gov/About_EDD/pdf/news-21-53.pdf\">the agency estimates around 500,000 Californians are still on regular state unemployment insurance\u003c/a> — just without the $300 federal PAC supplement they used to get.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://www.edd.ca.gov/pdf_pub_ctr/de8714ab.pdf\">EDD uses what they call a 'base period' to calculate your benefits\u003c/a> and whether you are eligible for benefits in general. \u003ca href=\"https://www.edd.ca.gov/pdf_pub_ctr/de8714ab.pdf\">See the earning requirements for establishing a valid claim.\u003c/a>[pullquote size='medium' align='right']People who filed claims at the beginning of the pandemic but have not been back to work at all are not going to be eligible to file a new regular unemployment claim.[/pullquote]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>An important note is that people who filed claims at the beginning of the pandemic but have not been back to work at all are not going to be eligible to file a new regular unemployment claim, says Daniela Urban, executive director of \u003ca href=\"https://www.every.org/rightscenter\">The Center for Workers’ Rights in Sacramento\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It's \"[b]ecause they haven't had any new earnings, regardless of how far back they can go in their base period,\" she explained.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11867225\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 1920px\">\u003cimg class=\"wp-image-11867225 size-full\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2021/03/pexels-cottonbro-5054213-scaled-e1617913983516.jpg\" alt=\"Two hands type on a laptop in front of a window.\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1280\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">What should you do if your pandemic unemployment benefits have stopped? \u003ccite>(Cottonbro/Pexels)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003ch3>If I'm eligible for a new claim, what do I need to know?\u003c/h3>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Be strategic with your timing \u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>If you have earned enough since your last claim to qualify for a new one, Urban recommends you think strategically about \u003cem>when\u003c/em> you file — to maximize the amount and length of your new round of benefits.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A big reason why you should do this? Urban says EDD will never include the quarter of earnings in which you file your claim when it calculates your claim amount.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Since many people may have gotten work in the summertime before the delta variant really took hold, there’s a good chance you may have earnings in the third quarter of 2021, which runs between July 1 and Sept. 30. So, if you file in October, at the start of the fourth quarter — instead of September — EDD will consider those \"Q3 earnings\" when it calculates your benefits.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Consider whether your earnings will count\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\"The amount that you receive in unemployment is based on both your highest quarter of earnings as well as all of your earnings over the base period. So because many claimants didn't work for much of 2020, they might have a [higher] quarter of earnings recently like the most recent quarter or the quarter immediately preceding that,” Urban said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>People who’ve gotten back to work recently but then been laid off again should factor that into when they file, too, says Urban. That’s because, if you have just lost a new job, then your earnings from that quarter don't count.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\"So whenever we're at the end of a quarter, especially like we are right now, if you've recently lost work and most of your new job was just in that one quarter, they're only going to use the earnings from the quarter before that and maybe even two quarters before that, depending on what your other earnings were, in order to calculate your base period earnings,\" said Urban.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Remember there are no longer extensions\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Waiting to file has other benefits on top of making it more likely that folks’ higher earnings will be considered, \"because now that there aren't extensions, the maximum you'll be able to get is the 26 weeks within a 52-week period,\" stressed Urban.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\"So by delaying the start of that, you push back the time period where you start getting benefits. But that extends the time period for which you're able to collect those benefits if you still remain unemployed,\" she said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In short: When you're deciding to file, weigh how you can balance including the periods where you earned the most — and consider that the longer you wait to file, the more months (and, hopefully, closer to a fuller economic recovery) your benefits will run.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003ch3>\u003ca id=\"help\">\u003c/a>Where to find help if you've lost your pandemic unemployment benefits\u003c/h3>\n\u003cp>EDD has shared the following services for folks who need additional support during this transition.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Please note: Some unemployed folks have reported struggles securing public benefits if they had identity theft issues related to unemployment. Being unemployed can also interfere with the ability to file tax returns, which will impact stimulus payment access.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>\u003ca href=\"https://www.getcalfresh.org/\">CalFresh \u003c/a>\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>California's food stamps (SNAP) program offers more than $200 a month in food support. \u003ca href=\"https://www.getcalfresh.org/\">Sign up for CalFresh online\u003c/a> or call (877) 847-3663.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>\u003ca href=\"https://housing.ca.gov/\">Housing Is Key \u003c/a>\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Information and support around rent and utilities from the state. \u003ca href=\"https://housing.ca.gov/\">Sign up through Housing Is Key online\u003c/a> or call (833) 430-2122.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>\u003ca href=\"https://www.coveredca.com/\">Covered California or Medi-Cal \u003c/a>\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>EDD notes that \"Californians who received unemployment insurance in 2021 may be eligible for Covered California’s best coverage for $1 per month. Individuals already enrolled in Medi-Cal or a Covered California health plan should report any loss of unemployment benefits to Covered California because this will lower health coverage costs.\"\u003ca href=\"https://www.coveredca.com/\"> See more about Covered California or Medi-Cal online\u003c/a> or call (800) 300-1506.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>\u003ca href=\"https://benefitscal.org/\">BenefitsCal\u003c/a>\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>BenefitsCal offers a way to apply for CalFresh, CalWORKs, Medi-Cal, CMSP (County Medical Services Program), Disaster CalFresh or GA/GR (General Assistance or General Relief). This site replaces C4Yourself, YourBenefitsNow and MyBenefits CalWIN. \u003ca href=\"https://benefitscal.org/\">Apply through BenefitsCal online.\u003c/a>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>\u003ca href=\"https://www.ftb.ca.gov/about-ftb/newsroom/golden-state-stimulus/index.html\">Golden State Stimulus\u003c/a> \u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Eligible tax filers can \u003ca href=\"https://www.ftb.ca.gov/about-ftb/newsroom/golden-state-stimulus/index.html\">apply for the Golden State Stimulus. \u003c/a>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11862122/how-to-get-your-california-stimulus-check-and-other-tax-credits-youre-entitled-to\">Read more from KQED about the Golden State Stimulus.\u003c/a>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad floatright]\u003c/p>\n",
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"excerpt": "If you're claiming unemployment benefits in California through EDD, here's what to know if you're still out of work, now that the pandemic federal programs have stopped.",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cul>\n\u003cli>\u003cstrong>Go straight to: \u003ca href=\"#help\">Where to find help if your pandemic federal benefits have ended\u003c/a>\u003c/strong>\u003c/li>\n\u003c/ul>\n\u003cp>Around Labor Day, up to 2.2 million \u003ca href=\"https://edd.ca.gov/About_EDD/pdf/news-21-53.pdf\">Californians lost federal benefits established to help get them through the pandemic\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11888075/empty-savings-damaged-health-for-pandemic-unemployed-recovery-can-be-a-long-road\">plenty of people still haven’t found work\u003c/a>. Some also have circumstances that are keeping them out of the job market, like \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11887707/chinatowns-communal-housing-residents-organize-to-keep-their-students-at-home\">not wanting to send their unvaccinated kids back to school\u003c/a>, or worrying about contracting COVID in the workplace.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>If you're reading this because your pandemic federal benefits expired earlier this month, we should say up-front: there are not a \u003cem>huge\u003c/em> amount of options available to you right now.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But if you have worked at some point during the pandemic, there are a few things you can do to maximize the benefits you can claim. Not least because some Californians are still eligible for regular unemployment and should continue to certify for benefits, according to the Employment Development Department (EDD).\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And if you haven’t, there are still \u003ca href=\"#help\">a number of state programs you may be entitled to, to help bridge certain gaps right now.\u003c/a>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Keep reading for our guide to help you figure the paths open to you.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch3>Which of my unemployment benefits have actually expired?\u003c/h3>\n\u003cp>Back on Sept. 4, the following federal unemployment benefits established by the CARES Act expired:\u003c/p>\n\u003cul>\n\u003cli>\u003cstrong>\u003ca href=\"https://edd.ca.gov/about_edd/coronavirus-2019/cares-act.htm#PUA\">Pandemic Unemployment Assistance\u003c/a>\u003c/strong> (PUA): The federal program that supported business owners, independent contractors and self-employed workers. (If you only got a 1099 tax form, this was likely the program you were on.)\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>\u003cstrong>\u003ca href=\"https://edd.ca.gov/about_edd/coronavirus-2019/cares-act.htm#PEUC\">Pandemic Emergency Unemployment Compensation\u003c/a>\u003c/strong> (PEUC): The federal program for people who were on regular unemployment but exhausted those funds.\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>\u003ca href=\"https://edd.ca.gov/about_edd/coronavirus-2019/cares-act.htm#PAC\">\u003cstrong>Pandemic Additional Compensation\u003c/strong> \u003c/a>(PAC) (also known as Federal Pandemic Unemployment Compensation, or FPUC): The program that paid $300 in federal unemployment compensation on top of a claimant's current weekly benefit amount for weeks of unemployment between December 27, 2020, and September 4, 2021.\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>\u003ca href=\"https://edd.ca.gov/about_edd/coronavirus-2019/cares-act.htm#MEUC\">\u003cstrong>Mixed Earner Unemployment Compensation\u003c/strong>\u003c/a> (MEUC): The program that paid an additional $100 per week in supplemental unemployment benefits to claimants who received regular unemployment or extension benefits and earned self-employment income in the year before their claim.\u003c/li>\n\u003c/ul>\n\u003cp>Also available was \u003ca href=\"https://www.edd.ca.gov/about_edd/coronavirus-2019/fed-ed.htm\">Federal-State Extended Duration \u003c/a>(FED-ED), the federal program for people who had exhausted both regular unemployment insurance and PEUC funds. Some people had remaining weeks of FED-ED eligibility, but these payments also expired Sept. 11.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch3>Why these federal benefits were created, and who's being left out, according to advocates\u003c/h3>\n\u003cp>These now-expired pandemic unemployment benefits were created as temporary emergency payments and extensions, and some of them were intended to bridge gaps for people who don’t \u003cem>qualify\u003c/em> for regular unemployment, like gig workers and the self-employed.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In the lead-up to their expiration, some advocates pointed out that the absence of preexisting unemployment support nets for these workers highlights glaring holes in the system that still need filling.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\"'Why is it OK for those folks to be excluded from the program when it's \u003cem>not\u003c/em> a pandemic?' is a question we need to ask ourselves,\" said Rebecca Dixon, executive director of the National Employment Law Project.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\"And if we can figure out how to make it work during a pandemic to cover them, we need to be covering them all the time.\"\u003c/p>\n\u003ch3>I'm on regular unemployment. Where do I stand?\u003c/h3>\n\u003cp>According to an EDD release from early September, \u003ca href=\"https://edd.ca.gov/About_EDD/pdf/news-21-53.pdf\">the agency estimates around 500,000 Californians are still on regular state unemployment insurance\u003c/a> — just without the $300 federal PAC supplement they used to get.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://www.edd.ca.gov/pdf_pub_ctr/de8714ab.pdf\">EDD uses what they call a 'base period' to calculate your benefits\u003c/a> and whether you are eligible for benefits in general. \u003ca href=\"https://www.edd.ca.gov/pdf_pub_ctr/de8714ab.pdf\">See the earning requirements for establishing a valid claim.\u003c/a>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>An important note is that people who filed claims at the beginning of the pandemic but have not been back to work at all are not going to be eligible to file a new regular unemployment claim, says Daniela Urban, executive director of \u003ca href=\"https://www.every.org/rightscenter\">The Center for Workers’ Rights in Sacramento\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It's \"[b]ecause they haven't had any new earnings, regardless of how far back they can go in their base period,\" she explained.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11867225\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 1920px\">\u003cimg class=\"wp-image-11867225 size-full\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2021/03/pexels-cottonbro-5054213-scaled-e1617913983516.jpg\" alt=\"Two hands type on a laptop in front of a window.\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1280\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">What should you do if your pandemic unemployment benefits have stopped? \u003ccite>(Cottonbro/Pexels)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003ch3>If I'm eligible for a new claim, what do I need to know?\u003c/h3>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Be strategic with your timing \u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>If you have earned enough since your last claim to qualify for a new one, Urban recommends you think strategically about \u003cem>when\u003c/em> you file — to maximize the amount and length of your new round of benefits.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A big reason why you should do this? Urban says EDD will never include the quarter of earnings in which you file your claim when it calculates your claim amount.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Since many people may have gotten work in the summertime before the delta variant really took hold, there’s a good chance you may have earnings in the third quarter of 2021, which runs between July 1 and Sept. 30. So, if you file in October, at the start of the fourth quarter — instead of September — EDD will consider those \"Q3 earnings\" when it calculates your benefits.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Consider whether your earnings will count\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\"The amount that you receive in unemployment is based on both your highest quarter of earnings as well as all of your earnings over the base period. So because many claimants didn't work for much of 2020, they might have a [higher] quarter of earnings recently like the most recent quarter or the quarter immediately preceding that,” Urban said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>People who’ve gotten back to work recently but then been laid off again should factor that into when they file, too, says Urban. That’s because, if you have just lost a new job, then your earnings from that quarter don't count.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\"So whenever we're at the end of a quarter, especially like we are right now, if you've recently lost work and most of your new job was just in that one quarter, they're only going to use the earnings from the quarter before that and maybe even two quarters before that, depending on what your other earnings were, in order to calculate your base period earnings,\" said Urban.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Remember there are no longer extensions\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Waiting to file has other benefits on top of making it more likely that folks’ higher earnings will be considered, \"because now that there aren't extensions, the maximum you'll be able to get is the 26 weeks within a 52-week period,\" stressed Urban.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\"So by delaying the start of that, you push back the time period where you start getting benefits. But that extends the time period for which you're able to collect those benefits if you still remain unemployed,\" she said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In short: When you're deciding to file, weigh how you can balance including the periods where you earned the most — and consider that the longer you wait to file, the more months (and, hopefully, closer to a fuller economic recovery) your benefits will run.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003ch3>\u003ca id=\"help\">\u003c/a>Where to find help if you've lost your pandemic unemployment benefits\u003c/h3>\n\u003cp>EDD has shared the following services for folks who need additional support during this transition.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Please note: Some unemployed folks have reported struggles securing public benefits if they had identity theft issues related to unemployment. Being unemployed can also interfere with the ability to file tax returns, which will impact stimulus payment access.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>\u003ca href=\"https://www.getcalfresh.org/\">CalFresh \u003c/a>\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>California's food stamps (SNAP) program offers more than $200 a month in food support. \u003ca href=\"https://www.getcalfresh.org/\">Sign up for CalFresh online\u003c/a> or call (877) 847-3663.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>\u003ca href=\"https://housing.ca.gov/\">Housing Is Key \u003c/a>\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Information and support around rent and utilities from the state. \u003ca href=\"https://housing.ca.gov/\">Sign up through Housing Is Key online\u003c/a> or call (833) 430-2122.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>\u003ca href=\"https://www.coveredca.com/\">Covered California or Medi-Cal \u003c/a>\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>EDD notes that \"Californians who received unemployment insurance in 2021 may be eligible for Covered California’s best coverage for $1 per month. Individuals already enrolled in Medi-Cal or a Covered California health plan should report any loss of unemployment benefits to Covered California because this will lower health coverage costs.\"\u003ca href=\"https://www.coveredca.com/\"> See more about Covered California or Medi-Cal online\u003c/a> or call (800) 300-1506.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>\u003ca href=\"https://benefitscal.org/\">BenefitsCal\u003c/a>\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>BenefitsCal offers a way to apply for CalFresh, CalWORKs, Medi-Cal, CMSP (County Medical Services Program), Disaster CalFresh or GA/GR (General Assistance or General Relief). This site replaces C4Yourself, YourBenefitsNow and MyBenefits CalWIN. \u003ca href=\"https://benefitscal.org/\">Apply through BenefitsCal online.\u003c/a>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>\u003ca href=\"https://www.ftb.ca.gov/about-ftb/newsroom/golden-state-stimulus/index.html\">Golden State Stimulus\u003c/a> \u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Eligible tax filers can \u003ca href=\"https://www.ftb.ca.gov/about-ftb/newsroom/golden-state-stimulus/index.html\">apply for the Golden State Stimulus. \u003c/a>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11862122/how-to-get-your-california-stimulus-check-and-other-tax-credits-youre-entitled-to\">Read more from KQED about the Golden State Stimulus.\u003c/a>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"disqusTitle": "Empty Savings, Damaged Health: For Pandemic Unemployed, Recovery Can Be a Long Road",
"title": "Empty Savings, Damaged Health: For Pandemic Unemployed, Recovery Can Be a Long Road",
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"content": "\u003cp>When Rey Garnica got laid off from his job as a financial data analyst at the beginning of the pandemic, the Riverside County resident, who's a homeowner with an advanced degree, assumed he'd be in a better position than most to weather a stretch of unemployment.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I have a bachelor's in engineering and a master's in business, so that makes it seem like, ‘Well, you have great value, Rey. Like people should be chomping at the bit to hire you,’” Garnica said. “But it doesn't, unfortunately.\"[pullquote align=\"right\" size=\"medium\" citation=\"Rey Garnica\"]'I have a bachelor's in engineering and a master's in business, so that makes it seem like ... people should be chomping at the bit to hire you. But it doesn't, unfortunately.'[/pullquote]Garnica has already paid two different consultants to rework his résumé, and said he would gladly take a lower-paying job. But despite all the applications he’s submitted, he’s only gotten two interviews since the start of the pandemic, neither of which has resulted in a job offer.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Garnica is one of as many as 2 million Californians whose federal unemployment benefits \u003ca href=\"https://edd.ca.gov/About_EDD/pdf/news-21-53.pdf\">expired over Labor Day weekend\u003c/a>. People who still haven’t found work are now trying to move forward with less support, but research from previous recessions suggests many \u003ca href=\"https://academic.oup.com/qje/article-abstract/124/3/1265/1905153?redirectedFrom=fulltext\">may never fully recover\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch3>\u003cb>Making it work \u003c/b>\u003c/h3>\n\u003cp>While out of work, Garnica has tried to modify his life to stay afloat. He’s pulled money out of his 401(k) account to pay bills, borrowed from friends to cover his mortgage, and rented out rooms in his house, where he lives with his girlfriend and her older son, and the couple's newborn baby boy.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The most stressful time is the end of the month, he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11888092\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\" style=\"max-width: 300px\">\u003ca href=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2021/09/Rey-in-suit-1.jpeg\">\u003cimg class=\"wp-image-11888092\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2021/09/Rey-in-suit-1-160x240.jpeg\" alt=\"A clean-cut man in a suit and tie.\" width=\"300\" height=\"450\" srcset=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2021/09/Rey-in-suit-1-160x240.jpeg 160w, https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2021/09/Rey-in-suit-1.jpeg 724w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\">\u003c/a>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Reynaldo \"Rey\" Garnica worked as a financial data analyst before he was laid off in April 2020. \u003ccite>(Courtesy Rey Garnica)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>“All the bills start coming due and you're like, ‘OK, am I going to default on this bill?’ Is it more advantageous for me to pull money out of my 401(k)? If I pull money out of my bank, how does that affect my unemployment … if I am going to get unemployment?”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Because he initially felt confident he’d find another job quickly, Garnica didn’t immediately sign up for health insurance when his work coverage expired. In June 2020, after a little over a month without any coverage, he signed up for Covered California, the state’s health insurance marketplace, with his plan set to go into effect the following month.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Then, at the end of the month, Garnica had a heart attack — the day before his plan began.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I didn't go to the hospital right away because my insurance didn't kick in until midnight. That was kind of like a crappy situation to be in, right?” said Garnica.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch3>\u003cb>Health issues 'tightly linked' to unemployment\u003c/b>\u003c/h3>\n\u003cp>Garnica is only 42 years old and, fortunately, recovered. It’s impossible to know the root cause of his heart attack, but there is \u003ca href=\"https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0033350605804366?via%3Dihub\">long-standing research\u003c/a> linking unemployment to major health issues, \u003ca href=\"https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamainternalmedicine/fullarticle/1392492\">including heart attacks\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The population health issues that arise over the next years could very well be tightly linked to the unemployment that we've seen that's been spurred by the pandemic,” said Jennie Brand, a sociologist at UCLA and director of the California Center for Population Research.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Brand said unemployment can prompt stress and depression and even lead to alcohol or drug use disorder. It also often leads to people putting off getting health care, like Garnica did.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>What’s more, in February, \u003ca href=\"https://ajph.aphapublications.org/doi/10.2105/AJPH.2020.306095\">researchers from UCSF\u003c/a> estimated that more than 30,000 Americans would die within the first year of the pandemic from unemployment-related health issues.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In light of the well-documented links between unemployment and diminished health, and the sheer number of Americans still looking for jobs, Brand and other researchers are \u003ca href=\"https://theconversation.com/why-widespread-health-woes-could-follow-from-pandemic-driven-job-losses-160224\">now warning of a potential new pending health crisis\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch3>Struggling to start from scratch again\u003c/h3>\n\u003cp>On top of health struggles, economic woes will \u003ca href=\"https://twitter.com/CAPolicyLab/status/1410249110888742919\">hit harder\u003c/a> those who already are more marginalized, especially workers of color, said Rebecca Dixon, executive director of the National Employment Law Project.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[aside label=\"related coverage\" tag=\"unemployment\"]“You have this inequity that is inherent in the labor market in terms of who gets hired first or who has an easier time finding a job,” Dixon said. “And then you also have these same groups of folks who tend to work, you know, disproportionately in low-paid jobs and so don't have savings, say, to fall back on in these kinds of times.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Before the pandemic, Stanislaus County resident Melyssa Huerta, 46, had savings put away and was able to support herself and her daughter through her in-home nail business.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I used to have, I say, like at least 10, 12 clients and now I'm down to like two or three. I'm not making even a quarter of what I was making before,” she said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Huerta’s financial struggles have been particularly tough because she also cares for her 19-year-old daughter, Mariah, who has special needs.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>She and Mariah were living with Huerta’s mother, who was lending her money to get by. But it was difficult for her mom to continue to support her, so now she and Mariah have moved into a bedroom in a house about 45 minutes from Mariah’s school. The instability has been especially hard for her daughter, Huerta said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]“I'm not able to take her out to go do fun things. I'm barely making ends meet. I don't have money barely for gas. Sometimes it's just, it's hard.”\u003cb>\u003ci> \u003c/i>\u003c/b>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>On top of all this, Huerta said her unemployment benefits had been tied up for months due to an Employment Development Department (EDD) error — even after she won an appeal. EDD finally loaded a portion of the funds into her account just last week, but now she has to hand over 25% of it to the company she hired to help her access her locked benefits.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I'm so piled in debt right now that, I mean, to catch up and then to get back to where I was prior to the pandemic, I don't see it happening,” Huerta said, “I'm still going to have to struggle to start from scratch again.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>When Huerta does get the remainder of her delayed benefits, they’ll be the last she’ll receive, since she doesn’t qualify for regular state unemployment.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[pullquote align=\"right\" size=\"medium\" citation=\"Melyssa Huerta\"]'I'm so piled in debt right now that, I mean, to catch up and then to get back to where I was prior to the pandemic, I don't see it happening. I'm still going to have to struggle to start from scratch again.'[/pullquote]And in the last few weeks, she said, her doctor found cysts on her lymph nodes, and now she’s waiting for an explanation of her bloodwork, but can’t get anyone at the medical clinic she’s using to call her back. The lower-income health care program she’s now on isn’t what she’s used to, she said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A growing body of research suggests that Huerta and Garnica, who are considered “\u003ca href=\"https://www.marketplace.org/2021/05/20/why-long-term-unemployment-starts-27-weeks/\">long-term unemployed\u003c/a>” (without work for 27 weeks or more) are likely to suffer both health and economic consequences for years. A number of studies, including a \u003ca href=\"https://www.brookings.edu/wp-content/uploads/2016/07/2014a_Krueger.pdf\">2014 Brookings Institution analysis,\u003c/a> found the longer someone is out of work, the less likely they are to find a good job. According to the study, for people who lost their jobs following the Great Recession, the chances of getting a full-time, steady job went from 19% at the start of their unemployment to 11% after seven months being out of work. After two years of not working, that rate plummeted to 6%.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“A lot of people end up getting jobs, but never getting jobs that pay quite what they used to be paid,” said UC Berkeley economist Sylvia Allegretto. “Many people end up depleting some of their, if not all of their, regular savings.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>She said people often dip into their 401(k)s, as Rey Garnica did, which can be especially detrimental because it comes with steep tax penalties.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Trying to offset current debt created by unemployment with savings haunts people down the road, Allegretto said. “You're really taking a problem now and moving at least a large part of it into your future.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>At the end of this June, almost exactly a year after Garnica’s heart attack, he and his girlfriend had a baby: “He’s a junior,” said Garnica, who calls him “Baby Rey.” Like Huerta, Garnica’s unemployment benefits had also been tied up for months. They finally came through last month — but now he’s coping with debt he accrued waiting for them, and the huge new financial responsibility of caring for a newborn.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Garnica did have an interview recently with a start-up, but has yet to hear back and said, even if he gets an offer, he expects the salary will be half what he used to make.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I’m 42, and I feel lost,” he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad floatright]\u003c/p>\n",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>When Rey Garnica got laid off from his job as a financial data analyst at the beginning of the pandemic, the Riverside County resident, who's a homeowner with an advanced degree, assumed he'd be in a better position than most to weather a stretch of unemployment.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I have a bachelor's in engineering and a master's in business, so that makes it seem like, ‘Well, you have great value, Rey. Like people should be chomping at the bit to hire you,’” Garnica said. “But it doesn't, unfortunately.\"\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>Garnica has already paid two different consultants to rework his résumé, and said he would gladly take a lower-paying job. But despite all the applications he’s submitted, he’s only gotten two interviews since the start of the pandemic, neither of which has resulted in a job offer.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Garnica is one of as many as 2 million Californians whose federal unemployment benefits \u003ca href=\"https://edd.ca.gov/About_EDD/pdf/news-21-53.pdf\">expired over Labor Day weekend\u003c/a>. People who still haven’t found work are now trying to move forward with less support, but research from previous recessions suggests many \u003ca href=\"https://academic.oup.com/qje/article-abstract/124/3/1265/1905153?redirectedFrom=fulltext\">may never fully recover\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch3>\u003cb>Making it work \u003c/b>\u003c/h3>\n\u003cp>While out of work, Garnica has tried to modify his life to stay afloat. He’s pulled money out of his 401(k) account to pay bills, borrowed from friends to cover his mortgage, and rented out rooms in his house, where he lives with his girlfriend and her older son, and the couple's newborn baby boy.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The most stressful time is the end of the month, he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11888092\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\" style=\"max-width: 300px\">\u003ca href=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2021/09/Rey-in-suit-1.jpeg\">\u003cimg class=\"wp-image-11888092\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2021/09/Rey-in-suit-1-160x240.jpeg\" alt=\"A clean-cut man in a suit and tie.\" width=\"300\" height=\"450\" srcset=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2021/09/Rey-in-suit-1-160x240.jpeg 160w, https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2021/09/Rey-in-suit-1.jpeg 724w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\">\u003c/a>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Reynaldo \"Rey\" Garnica worked as a financial data analyst before he was laid off in April 2020. \u003ccite>(Courtesy Rey Garnica)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>“All the bills start coming due and you're like, ‘OK, am I going to default on this bill?’ Is it more advantageous for me to pull money out of my 401(k)? If I pull money out of my bank, how does that affect my unemployment … if I am going to get unemployment?”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Because he initially felt confident he’d find another job quickly, Garnica didn’t immediately sign up for health insurance when his work coverage expired. In June 2020, after a little over a month without any coverage, he signed up for Covered California, the state’s health insurance marketplace, with his plan set to go into effect the following month.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Then, at the end of the month, Garnica had a heart attack — the day before his plan began.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I didn't go to the hospital right away because my insurance didn't kick in until midnight. That was kind of like a crappy situation to be in, right?” said Garnica.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch3>\u003cb>Health issues 'tightly linked' to unemployment\u003c/b>\u003c/h3>\n\u003cp>Garnica is only 42 years old and, fortunately, recovered. It’s impossible to know the root cause of his heart attack, but there is \u003ca href=\"https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0033350605804366?via%3Dihub\">long-standing research\u003c/a> linking unemployment to major health issues, \u003ca href=\"https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamainternalmedicine/fullarticle/1392492\">including heart attacks\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The population health issues that arise over the next years could very well be tightly linked to the unemployment that we've seen that's been spurred by the pandemic,” said Jennie Brand, a sociologist at UCLA and director of the California Center for Population Research.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Brand said unemployment can prompt stress and depression and even lead to alcohol or drug use disorder. It also often leads to people putting off getting health care, like Garnica did.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>What’s more, in February, \u003ca href=\"https://ajph.aphapublications.org/doi/10.2105/AJPH.2020.306095\">researchers from UCSF\u003c/a> estimated that more than 30,000 Americans would die within the first year of the pandemic from unemployment-related health issues.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In light of the well-documented links between unemployment and diminished health, and the sheer number of Americans still looking for jobs, Brand and other researchers are \u003ca href=\"https://theconversation.com/why-widespread-health-woes-could-follow-from-pandemic-driven-job-losses-160224\">now warning of a potential new pending health crisis\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch3>Struggling to start from scratch again\u003c/h3>\n\u003cp>On top of health struggles, economic woes will \u003ca href=\"https://twitter.com/CAPolicyLab/status/1410249110888742919\">hit harder\u003c/a> those who already are more marginalized, especially workers of color, said Rebecca Dixon, executive director of the National Employment Law Project.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>And in the last few weeks, she said, her doctor found cysts on her lymph nodes, and now she’s waiting for an explanation of her bloodwork, but can’t get anyone at the medical clinic she’s using to call her back. The lower-income health care program she’s now on isn’t what she’s used to, she said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A growing body of research suggests that Huerta and Garnica, who are considered “\u003ca href=\"https://www.marketplace.org/2021/05/20/why-long-term-unemployment-starts-27-weeks/\">long-term unemployed\u003c/a>” (without work for 27 weeks or more) are likely to suffer both health and economic consequences for years. A number of studies, including a \u003ca href=\"https://www.brookings.edu/wp-content/uploads/2016/07/2014a_Krueger.pdf\">2014 Brookings Institution analysis,\u003c/a> found the longer someone is out of work, the less likely they are to find a good job. According to the study, for people who lost their jobs following the Great Recession, the chances of getting a full-time, steady job went from 19% at the start of their unemployment to 11% after seven months being out of work. After two years of not working, that rate plummeted to 6%.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“A lot of people end up getting jobs, but never getting jobs that pay quite what they used to be paid,” said UC Berkeley economist Sylvia Allegretto. “Many people end up depleting some of their, if not all of their, regular savings.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>She said people often dip into their 401(k)s, as Rey Garnica did, which can be especially detrimental because it comes with steep tax penalties.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Trying to offset current debt created by unemployment with savings haunts people down the road, Allegretto said. “You're really taking a problem now and moving at least a large part of it into your future.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>At the end of this June, almost exactly a year after Garnica’s heart attack, he and his girlfriend had a baby: “He’s a junior,” said Garnica, who calls him “Baby Rey.” Like Huerta, Garnica’s unemployment benefits had also been tied up for months. They finally came through last month — but now he’s coping with debt he accrued waiting for them, and the huge new financial responsibility of caring for a newborn.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Garnica did have an interview recently with a start-up, but has yet to hear back and said, even if he gets an offer, he expects the salary will be half what he used to make.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I’m 42, and I feel lost,” he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"tagline": "The flip side of gentrification, told through one town",
"info": "Gentrification is changing cities across America, forcing people from neighborhoods they have long called home. Call them the displaced. Now those priced out of the Bay Area are looking for a better life in an unlikely place. American Suburb follows this migration to one California town along the Delta, 45 miles from San Francisco. But is this once sleepy suburb ready for them?",
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"tagline": "Exploring the Bay Area, one question at a time",
"info": "KQED’s new podcast, Bay Curious, gets to the bottom of the mysteries — both profound and peculiar — that give the Bay Area its unique identity. And we’ll do it with your help! You ask the questions. You decide what Bay Curious investigates. And you join us on the journey to find the answers.",
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"info": "KQED’s statewide radio news program providing daily coverage of issues, trends and public policy decisions.",
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"order": 8
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},
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"order": 1
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"info": "\u003cem>Code Switch\u003c/em>, which listeners will hear in the first part of the hour, has fearless and much-needed conversations about race. Hosted by journalists of color, the show tackles the subject of race head-on, exploring how it impacts every part of society — from politics and pop culture to history, sports and more.\u003cbr />\u003cbr />\u003cem>Life Kit\u003c/em>, which will be in the second part of the hour, guides you through spaces and feelings no one prepares you for — from finances to mental health, from workplace microaggressions to imposter syndrome, from relationships to parenting. The show features experts with real world experience and shares their knowledge. Because everyone needs a little help being human.\u003cbr />\u003cbr />\u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/podcasts/510312/codeswitch\">\u003cem>Code Switch\u003c/em> offical site and podcast\u003c/a>\u003cbr />\u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/lifekit\">\u003cem>Life Kit\u003c/em> offical site and podcast\u003c/a>\u003cbr />",
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"id": "commonwealth-club",
"title": "Commonwealth Club of California Podcast",
"info": "The Commonwealth Club of California is the nation's oldest and largest public affairs forum. As a non-partisan forum, The Club brings to the public airwaves diverse viewpoints on important topics. The Club's weekly radio broadcast - the oldest in the U.S., dating back to 1924 - is carried across the nation on public radio stations and is now podcasting. Our website archive features audio of our recent programs, as well as selected speeches from our long and distinguished history. This podcast feed is usually updated twice a week and is always un-edited.",
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"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Commonwealth-Club-Podcast-Tile-360x360-1.jpg",
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"source": "Commonwealth Club of California"
},
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"info": "KQED’s live call-in program discussing local, state, national and international issues, as well as in-depth interviews.",
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"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Forum-Podcast-Tile-703x703-1.jpg",
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"order": 9
},
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"id": "fresh-air",
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"hidden-brain": {
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"airtime": "SUN 7pm-8pm",
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"airtime": "SUN 7:30pm-8pm",
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"tagline": "Where conversation and cultura meet",
"info": "What kind of no sabo word is Hyphenación? For us, it’s about living within a hyphenation. Like being a third-gen Mexican-American from the Texas border now living that Bay Area Chicano life. Like Xorje! Each week we bring together a couple of hyphenated Latinos to talk all about personal life choices: family, careers, relationships, belonging … everything is on the table. ",
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"title": "The Political Mind of Jerry Brown",
"tagline": "Lessons from a lifetime in politics",
"info": "The Political Mind of Jerry Brown brings listeners the wisdom of the former Governor, Mayor, and presidential candidate. Scott Shafer interviewed Brown for more than 40 hours, covering the former governor's life and half-century in the political game – and Brown has some lessons he'd like to share. ",
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"order": 18
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},
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"id": "latino-usa",
"title": "Latino USA",
"airtime": "MON 1am-2am, SUN 6pm-7pm",
"info": "Latino USA, the radio journal of news and culture, is the only national, English-language radio program produced from a Latino perspective.",
"imageSrc": "https://ww2.kqed.org/radio/wp-content/uploads/sites/50/2018/04/latinoUsa.jpg",
"officialWebsiteLink": "http://latinousa.org/",
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},
"marketplace": {
"id": "marketplace",
"title": "Marketplace",
"info": "Our flagship program, helmed by Kai Ryssdal, examines what the day in money delivered, through stories, conversations, newsworthy numbers and more. Updated Monday through Friday at about 3:30 p.m. PT.",
"airtime": "MON-FRI 4pm-4:30pm, MON-WED 6:30pm-7pm",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Marketplace-Podcast-Tile-360x360-1.jpg",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://www.marketplace.org/",
"meta": {
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"source": "American Public Media"
},
"link": "/radio/program/marketplace",
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"rss": "https://feeds.publicradio.org/public_feeds/marketplace-pm/rss/rss"
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},
"masters-of-scale": {
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"title": "Masters of Scale",
"info": "Masters of Scale is an original podcast in which LinkedIn co-founder and Greylock Partner Reid Hoffman sets out to describe and prove theories that explain how great entrepreneurs take their companies from zero to a gazillion in ingenious fashion.",
"airtime": "Every other Wednesday June 12 through October 16 at 8pm (repeats Thursdays at 2am)",
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"officialWebsiteLink": "https://mastersofscale.com/",
"meta": {
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"source": "WaitWhat"
},
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"rss": "https://rss.art19.com/masters-of-scale"
}
},
"mindshift": {
"id": "mindshift",
"title": "MindShift",
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"info": "The MindShift podcast explores the innovations in education that are shaping how kids learn. Hosts Ki Sung and Katrina Schwartz introduce listeners to educators, researchers, parents and students who are developing effective ways to improve how kids learn. We cover topics like how fed-up administrators are developing surprising tactics to deal with classroom disruptions; how listening to podcasts are helping kids develop reading skills; the consequences of overparenting; and why interdisciplinary learning can engage students on all ends of the traditional achievement spectrum. This podcast is part of the MindShift education site, a division of KQED News. KQED is an NPR/PBS member station based in San Francisco. You can also visit the MindShift website for episodes and supplemental blog posts or tweet us \u003ca href=\"https://twitter.com/MindShiftKQED\">@MindShiftKQED\u003c/a> or visit us at \u003ca href=\"/mindshift\">MindShift.KQED.org\u003c/a>",
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