How to File for Unemployment
(for CA Community College Contingent Faculty)
at the End of Fall 2023 Semester
— OVERVIEW —
It's best to read through this entire document before filing!
Then see either the:
Step-by-Step Guide to Filing a NEW Claim
or the
Step-by-Step Guide to REOPENING a Claim
Who Can Apply
All adjunct faculty members are eligible for unemployment benefits between terms. If you are not teaching in the summer, or if you have a lighter than normal load in the summer, you can file for and receive benefits. Even if you are teaching summer courses, you can file for and receive benefits for the period between the end of the spring term and start of the summer term, and for the period between summer and fall terms. You can also file for the period between fall and spring terms.
You are eligible even if you have been given and accepted an assignment for a future term.
Note that you are not eligible for benefits during spring break.
When to Apply
Unemployment benefits are not retroactive, and you cannot file early — you need to wait until the term has ended. The first day you can file is on the last day of the term (although it may avoid some confusion if you file shortly after the last day of the term). So it's usually best to apply as soon as the term ends, as the sooner you file the sooner you will get your first check. If the last day of the term is on a Saturday, filing on the following Monday is a good idea.
If you teach at multiple institutions, you could file as soon as your last job ends; this is the easiest and simplest way to go. But you could file after one job ends while still working at another. In this case it's a bit more complicated to do the filing, but you might get a little money for the week or two that you are "underemployed."
Principles
Under California law, adjunct/part-time instructors are eligible to file for unemployment benefits between terms, whether summer or winter. The "Cervisi" court decision holds that CA community college adjunct faculty, unlike K-12 teachers, can receive unemployment because they are technically laid off at the end of each term, and that, even though one may have a date to start work again next term, and even if they have signed an agreement stating that they will teach specific courses in an upcoming term, an assignment may be cancelled due to a number of reasons. The key principle here is that adjuncts do not have a "reasonable assurance" of re-employment.
Important: If EDD ever asks if you have a "reasonable assurance" of employment or re-employment (whether in a question on a form or in a phone interview) the answer is always "No."
Also, remember that adjunct faculty are technically laid off at the end of each term, and then (if you're lucky) rehired at the start of a term. This means that you are never in a "recess period," and you are never on a "school break" in service, and your work is not "seasonal."
Another important principle is that you must be able and willing to accept full-time work while collecting unemployment. If you indicate anything that may interfere with this, your benefits may be reduced or cancelled.
Logistics
A claim is good for one year. For example, if you opened a new claim at the end of the last spring semester, when you file in December you are reopening an existing claim. If it has been over a year since you last filed a new claim, you will need to file a new claim again.
The filing process will probably take a bit longer than you think it will, so just allow yourself enough time and don't stress. Filing a new claim may take you up to two hours, all told. Reopening an existing claim may take you up to an hour. A lot depends on having the necessary info; if you teach at multiple institutions you'll need to do a little more info gathering.
If you find yourself getting a bit stressed, just remember that a few hours now will probably net you over a thousand dollars for the winter break, or several thousand for the summer. Feel better now?
It's best to file online, as you ultimately get your payments faster. See:
https://portal.edd.ca.gov/WebApp/Login
to start the process.
If you have not filed online before, you will need to first register a new "Benefits Programs Online" account, and then log in to your new account. WRITE DOWN your account info — your login (email address) and password. If you are like most of us, you will NOT remember it when you file again months later.
If you do not already have an ID.me account you will be rquired to create one when you start the filing process. More on this is in Step-by-Step Guide to Filing a NEW Claim.
If you have previously filed online, you have a "Benefits Programs Online" account (the unemployment part of which is called "UI Online") with the EDD. As I'm sure you wrote down your account info when you created your account, it should be a simple matter to log in. If you have trouble logging in, you may find that your account becomes "locked" due to multiple attempts using an incorrect password. In this case you must simply wait (typically at least an hour) before you can try to log in again. If for some other reason you cannot log in and it tells you that your account is locked, you may need to contact the EDD (1-800-300-5616) and try to figure out how to get back in; this may take quite a bit of time).
Once you've logged in, if you have an existing claim that is not yet one year old, you should see a link to reopen the existing claim. Click that link to get started. Otherwise you'll be starting a new claim.
The maximum unemployment awarded is $450 per week (before taxes, as unemployment income is taxable). For a new claim there is a one-week waiting period before your unemployment kicks in, so you will not get paid for the first week. There is no waiting period for a re-opened claim.
If you have previously opened a claim, you would have received an "EDD Customer Account Number." Sometimes when dealing with EDD they will ask for this number.
Worksheets & Reources
- Info Worksheet - for general information you will need to file (for printing)
- Earnings Worksheet #1 - for calculating the quarterly income (interactive online form)
- Earnings Worksheet #2 - for calculating hours worked and hourly pay (for printing)
- Online Salary Conversion Calculator:
- CA Employment Development Department (EDD) help line: (800) 300-5616
- (Uh, good luck ever reaching someone there …)
Earnings Info Needed
For a new claim: For each employer, you will need your gross earnings for each of the last 6 calendar quarters (i.e. Jan-Mar, Apr-Jun, Jul-Sep, Oct-Dec). When reporting earnings to the EDD, earnings are always calculated according to when the work was performed, not when it was paid for. For example, if the college pays for work performed in December with a check dated Jan. 3rd, remember that this is December income. If you are filing in May and have not yet received a check for May you will need to estimate your May income (perhaps base it on your April check) to calculate your earnings for this most recent quarter. (See link to worksheet #1, above.)
Remember that if you teach at multiple institutions, you will need to have the info on your last 18 months of earnings from each college (for a new claim).
One of the nice thing about reopening an existing claim is that you will not need to list your income for the last 18 months.
You may be asked how much you made in the last week you worked, or how much you made per hour. There are a few different ways to calculate these numbers, as we don't punch time clocks and our work extends far beyond in-class time. Think of these figures as estimates; no one knows exactly how many hours you actually work. Do not stress over these numbers; just make a reasonable stab at it. After all, your award amount will probably be based only on the numbers reported to the state by the district, and not on any of the numbers you use when you file! (See link to worksheet #2, above.)
Answers to Some Important or Confusing Questions
- Q: Are you applying for Unemployment Insurance benefits because you are currently in a recess period or on a school break?
- A: No
- Q: Has your employer given you reasonable assurance (a verbal, written, or implied agreement), that you will return to work after the recess period or school break ends?
- A: No
- Q: Does your union or non-union trade association look for work for you?
- A: No
- Q: Does your union or non-union trade association control your hiring?
- A: No
- Q: Are you registered with your union or non-union trade association as out of work?
- A: No
- Q: Why are you no longer working for this employer?
- A: Laid off due to lack of work
- Q: Briefly explain in your own words the reason you are no longer working for your very last employer. Note: The information you provide will be shared with your last employer.
- A: My part-time teaching job ended. My next assignment is contingent on adequate enrollment, funding, program need, and district prerogatives.
- Q: Is your usual occupation seasonal? (Work that can be performed year round such as teaching at a school, tax preparation, or retail work is NOT considered seasonal work.)
- A: No
- Q: Do you have a return to work date for any employer?
- A: [If you have an assignment for the upcoming semester] Yes, I have a date to return to work [Note that most guides for adjuncts filing for unemployment advise answering "No" when asked if you have a date to return to work, even if you have been given a start date. This is because, even though you have been offered an assignment, it is not a guaranteed assignment, as it may be cancelled for a number of reasons. So it's your call as to how you wish to answer this question. If you answer Yes, it may trigger a phone interview, in which case you can make clear that your assignment offer is contingent on enrollment, funding, district needs, etc., and is therefore not "reasonable assurance" of employment.]
Save a Copy of Your Filing
As one of the last steps of the online filing process, you will be presented with an overview of all your answers. Before submitting your claim, save a copy of this page as a PDF, or print it out, for future reference.
After Filing
About a week or so after filing you will receive some or all of these things in the mail:
- A "Notice of Unemployment Insurance Claim Filed." Review this document, as you only have 10 days to correct any errors.
- An EDD "Customer Account Number Notification" listing your number. (Do not lose this, as you will need this number when set up your online account.)
- A "Notification of Unemployment Insurance Benefits Eligibility Interview." This is very important, as you will probably be scheduled for a phone interview. Make sure you are available to receive the call. (On rare occasions you may be given an appointment for an in-person interview, or required to attend a job-search workshop.)
- A "Notice of Unemployment Insurance Award" which tells you how much you will be getting paid.
Some of these documents may be available for you to view online as early as a day or so after you file, but will probably take quite a bit longer. Log in to your account at
https://portal.edd.ca.gov/WebApp/Login
and then click the "UI Online" link to see your notifications, appointments, and claim summary.
The first time you log in and try to manage your claim online, you may be forced to enter your profile information. A required field will be your Customer Account Number that would have been mailed to you.
You may be required to register as out-of-work with CalJobs at
https://www.caljobs.ca.gov
This doesn't take long to do online, so if EDD tells you that you have to do this then you should do it, or it may affect your benefits.
Every two weeks you will be required to fill out a bi-weekly claim form. (On rare occasions you may be asked to submit weekly, rather than biweekly, claim forms.) The first one will be postal-mailed to you, but you can opt to fill out these forms online. There will be a section where you can list the places where you applied for work during the 2-week period, but unless the form indicates that you are required to do this, you can leave these fields blank.
When you start working again, you can simply stop filling out these biweekly forms.
You will also be set up with a bank card with EDD that links to your personal bank account. This makes it easier and faster to receive your money, as you can set it up to automatically deposit your unemployment payments directly into your bank account. After you set this up your money will usually appear in your account within a couple days of filling out the online biweekly claim form, although things can always take significantly longer.
The Phone Interview
It is not unusual that you may be scheduled for a phone interview. This is not an indication that something is wrong; there appears to be a randomness to this. If so notified, you will be given a 2-hour window on a specific date, usually within a few weeks of filing your claim. It is important that you are able to receive this call. If you list a land-line number when you enter your contact information, you will need to be there to receive the call. For this reason you may wish to use a mobile number instead. Remember that your unemployment is contingent on your being able to accept work, so if you try to reschedule your phone appointment it will raise a red flag, as this means that you may not be able to work as needed. It's best to be able to receive the call when scheduled.
Make sure you have a copy of your filing while on the call (you did save a copy of your filing, didn't you?). Many of the questions they will ask you are the same ones you've already answered in your filing, and they are probably looking at your filing while asking the questions. Obviously if you give inconsistent answers you may have some explaining to do.
Don't stress too much about the phone interview; in many cases it will only last for few minutes. They may ask you whether you expect to return to work. Be sure to remind them that any future assignment offer is not a "reasonable assurance" of employment, as there are a number of reasons your assignment could be cancelled (low enrollment, budgetary reasons, district needs, etc.).
Also, take another look at the "Answers to Some Important or Confusing Questions" section above.
If You Are Denied Benefits
If you are a union member and for some reason you are denied benefits, contact your union immediately; they may be able to help you with the appeals process. See How to File an Appeal.
For the most current version of this document, see:
https://contingentworld.com/unemployment/unemployment_overview.php