EDD Announces Only People Actively Seeking Work Will Receive Unemployment Benefits
The return of the job search requirement is due to begin July 11th
By Evan Symon, June 18, 2021 4:21 pm
The Employment Development Department (EDD) announced on Thursday that unemployment benefits will no longer be given to people not actively applying for jobs.
California has had the looking-for-work requirement suspended for the last 15 months, ever since the COVID-19 pandemic began in March 2020. This came after the federal governments’ decision in early March 2020 to halt the federal work search unemployment requirements due to the high number of businesses firing or laying off workers. This left the matter in the hands of states, many of whom, including California, acting quickly on it.
However, with California now rapidly reopening and with a labor shortage due to the number of people not leaving unemployment, the return of the work search requirement on July 11th is hoped by many to reduce the number of people currently on unemployment in California.
“California offers many resources to help people to find safe and suitable careers and training opportunities that keep the economy moving,” stated EDD Director Rita Saenz.
However, despite the July end date for the work search requirement, the federal $300 in unemployment benefits being added to state benefits, which can be as high as $450 per week in California, will not end until September. Many experts worry that the federal delay by a few months may stifle a return to work for many.
“A lot of workers, mostly low wage Working class workers, have been electing to stay on unemployment because they are making more from unemployment than they would have been through their old job,” said Colleen Sanders, the owner of a Los Angeles-based headhunting firm to the Globe on Friday. “Many have been so used to getting above $15 an hour pay for so long now that going back at that rate isn’t an option for them. They’re asking for $18 an hour. $20 an hour. Benefits. Just for minimum wage jobs, many of which are part-time.”
“Even more, teenagers are now a precious commodity for being workers again. Before the Great Recession, a lot of these jobs were taken by teenagers over the summer, but in recent years adults have been getting them as second or third jobs to supplement other incomes. But with those workers now largely still on unemployment, teenagers, many of whom aren’t eligible for unemployment for a variety of reasons, are now being hounded out to fill these jobs. As are chronically out-of-work people who, while they would like that unemployment money, really need a build-up of job experience for better opportunities.”
“So, thanks to these people, wages aren’t climbing up much and can probably hold out until the July EDD date and the September federal date for unemployment rule expirations.”
According to the U.S. Department of labor, 2 million Californians are still receiving unemployment benefits, despite 38% of all new jobs added in the U.S. coming from California. Since March 2020, California has processed 20 million unemployment claims and paid more than $128 billion in benefits. However, that latter number is significantly negated due to $31 billion of that amount being fraudulently obtained.
California is now among one of the last states to return to a work requirement for their unemployment system. Governor Gavin Newsom largely dragged his feet on bring the state back to the requirement due to the possible political repercussions in what has become a sudden election year due to the impending recall election later this year.
“Newsom and others have been using added money, whether it be through unemployment or through special stimulus checks or some other program, to win people over for crucial elections this year,” added Michaela Robbins, a political labor consultant, to the Globe. “Removing what could be hundreds of thousands potential voters from getting benefits next month and then forcing many to go back to getting lower weekly pay in September, right before the election, isn’t exactly ideal.”
The job search requirement for unemployment benefits will formally begin once again beginning on July 11th.
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Before “comments are closed”, I have to ask – Is the guy who threw the bottle at Newsom on unemployment? That might explain his anger.
Really. Given the absolute devastation and misery Newsom and his friends have wrought in this state, you’d think the victims of it would at least be able to express themselves here. But I guess not.
It’s puzzling Showandtell. His sister says that the guy is semi-homeless with psychological issues and I don’t doubt what she says. But in the fragment of video, Newsom is walking along fist-bumping these folks who are sitting along the sidewalk. They didn’t seem like homeless people to me. Just folks “from the ‘hood” sitting outside, enjoying a hot summer day together….More information to come, I guess.
P.S. It seems that the gentleman was a regular in the area with this group. I’m just afraid that the media will portray this unfortunate incident as the result of an encounter with a “crazed mentally unstable” individual. That’s easy to do with a person like this gentleman; but it may not be accurate. How did the media portray the White news reporter who threw his shoe at Pres. Bush?
The Daily Wire is reporting Mr. Chaumette’s (prior/recent/current?) occupation as “pumping gas”. The facts as we know them remain, but this article adds some information:
https://www.dailywire.com/news/aggressive-homeless-man-arrested-accused-of-assaulting-ca-governor-before-pizza-photo-op
Here’s the photo of Mr. Chuamette being held down to be cuffed. Look at his nice white shoes. They sort of look expensive? And he looks clean shaven to me, though it’s difficult to see clearly. Interesting. All of the things on the ground may or may not belong to him. All speculation at this point, of course. https://www.lawofficer.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/Screen-Shot-2021-06-19-at-12.17.30-PM-e1624123138118.png
Thanks, Raymond. I just thought the incident as it was reported didn’t ring true and it seemed played up by main media in hopes of creating sympathy for the Gov. Perhaps an ordinary encounter with a mentally ill homeless man was exaggerated and over-dramatized to make a story or create sympathy… I don’t know. Please note that the Daily Wire article you found quoted a CHP officer as saying that it wasn’t confirmed that a water bottle had been thrown. So what do we really have here and why was the man arrested? The Gov and his entourage likely crossed paths with a mentally ill homeless man, the way millions of us in CA do every single day, and either the Gov’s people or the media decided to make a bigger story or a eye-grabbing headline out of it.
I just wanted to put it out there that the telling of the incident was short on details and was not recorded or witnessed by apparently anyone there so perhaps it was staged, largely made up, or SOMETHING. I wouldn’t have thought anything more of it until most of our comments were removed. I wish there were an explanation for shutting comments down; e.g., I can understand removing comments that threaten violence, etc. Doesn’t seem like a good sign when this outlet is censoring commenters.
Just out of curiosity, I ran a MyLife search on Mr. Chaumette. He was easy to identify – 54 years old, Berkeley CA. His profile score was 3.6 out of a possible 5. That’s an above average score. Interesting, maybe?
Yes Raymond, we’ll see what comes of this. Waiting for a video of the water bottle to surface (so to speak.) Don’t think it will, but we’ll see.
Meanwhile, to address the topic of the EDD scandal and other EDD items, take a look at this article by Evan Symon from last year. Be sure to note especially the 188 comments of desperate unemployed Californians (unemployed through no fault of their own) who are panicked and pleading to try to find information on how to get through to the EDD swamp. And even so it’s probably only a taste of the misery that came from this mess. But today we know the rest of the story, don’t we?
https://californiaglobe.com/section-2/edd-to-extend-some-unemployment-benefits-as-cares-act-winds-down/
Yes, very disturbing comments wrt all of the EDD problems. I found one individual, about half-way through the comments, who appeared to get it right when he said he felt the system was hacked. We know now where a lot of the funds were re-directed – i.e., to prisoners and criminals in various other states.
As for the “water bottle video”, if it DOES exist, it probably won’t show up until a price for it is negotiated. Questions like – was there anything said between the two prior to the throwing and who initiated, how long was the interaction, and what was said? You are right. We may never know.
Showandtell, it DOES seem that you and I are being singled out and censored; but ONLY for the one article about the so-called “homeless man” attacking the governor with a thrown water bottle (which may or may not be entirely true). I will say this: the ONE person on Newsom’s current staff who would remember the shoe-throwing incident against President Bush, is Dee Dee Meyers, Bill Clinton’s press secretary.
Okay Raymond, noted. Thinking about it. It’s just that one article as you said. We’re not being shut down here, after all. It’s odd, but I’m planning to let it go, proceed as usual, and see what happens. I’m not paranoid and conspiracy-minded as a rule. But we are living in very strange times as you know. Maybe an explanation will be provided. Or not. Take care.
Wow you guys, I was gone for a week and I am sad to read about posts being deleted and comments closed. What happened to our calm, trustworthy, open forum?
Should we speak to her, Showandtell, or give her the cold shoulder? After all, she’s leaving us DUMMIES who are staying in this “state”?
I am not interested in giving anyone the “cold shoulder.” Stacy seems like a fine and wonderful person and I think she is smart to move from this state, which is rapidly becoming unlivable. Like many others I was also born and raised here so I know how difficult the prospect of leaving would be. I wish her nothing but the best and a bright future in her new home.
Stacy knows that I was just kidding, Showandtell. 🙂 We all wish her the best. She’s making the right decision for herself and her family.
P.S. Sorry, I guess I should have used the wink 😉 emoji in the first place. Social media does have it’s limitations.
Incidentally, Showandtell. Having a FICO score of over 800, I ran my own profile on MyLife and it came out at 4.05. So, not much difference between Mr. Chaumette (3.60) and myself. Makes me even more curious about this whole “attacker” incident with Newsom.