California’s New Unemployment Benefit Application Is Easier and Faster to Complete

Californians already facing unemployment-related challenges will no longer have to decipher a slew of jargon when applying for unemployment benefits, thanks to a simpler online application the state rolled out Monday.

The Employment Development Department acknowledged that unemployment insurance is one of the “more complex public benefit programs with detailed state and federal requirements” making the application “complex and confusing.”

In response to feedback from consumers, employees and advocates, the department has simplified the online application process to help consumers understand the questions and additional information needed to apply for unemployment benefits.

What has changed in an unemployment claim?

In an effort to make the process easier for consumers, the State Department has revised the online application, clarifying conditions and instructions, and reorganizing the questions.

For example, a question on the previous form that often confused candidates was, “Are you willing to accept a job that matches your job skills and education?”

The department has now clarified the question: “If offered, would you be able to accept a full-time position or work full-time?”

Read more: California unemployment rises as private hiring slows and state government wages fall

Another part of the form that confused applicants was that they were asked to indicate the reason for their unemployment.

The department said many applicants used the “discharged” label for experience that did not quite fit that category. If an applicant potentially uses the wrong label, the department has to ask for more information and this delays payment.

Categories are now descriptive and expanded to include being fired (not your fault), laid off or laid off, still working (reduced hours), leaving a job or going on strike.

Why are these changes being made?

The app update meets the state’s Plain Language Equality Standard under Governor Gavin Newsom’s Equality and Discrimination Executive Order. Simple language makes instructions easy to understand (and translated into languages ​​other than English) and forms easier to fill out.

The app is now translated into the languages ​​most commonly spoken in California: Spanish, Armenian, Simplified Chinese, Traditional Chinese, Korean, Tagalog and Vietnamese.

The department has a call center where staff who speak these languages ​​can assist people in their preferred language or assist with translation.

The department has now updated benefit applications, contact centers, claims process, policies, procedures and forms as part of its modernization program, dubbed EDDNext.

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This story originally appeared in the Los Angeles Times.