After suspending the requirement, the EDD now says workers must look for work to receive unemployment benefits.
OAKLAND, Calif. (KGO) -- As the economy opens up, so are more jobs -- yet more than two million Californians are still collecting unemployment. But now the EDD is nudging folks to get back to work.
The Employment Development Department was notorious for putting roadblocks in the way of getting benefits during the pandemic. Now it's saying workers must also swear they are trying to find a job or they will lose benefits. Is this another roadblock?
Melissa Guttierez of Oakland lost her bartending job when businesses shut down in the pandemic. But like millions of others, she didn't have to look for work in order to qualify for unemployment during the lockdown. "It asked me if I was able to go find work and I put no -- because of shelter-in-place."
All that's changing now.
"To continue receiving benefits, you have to regularly certify that you're able to work and actively looking for work," says former EDD director Michael Bernick.
He says unemployed workers now must try to find a job -- although he says rules are pretty loose. "It's a nudge. It's an encouragement for people to look for work. it's a soft requirement."
Question 3 on the EDD form asks simply: "Did you look for work?"
"And you have to certify 'yes' to continue to receive benefits, but you don't have to list employers you've contacted or any mechanism. So it's largely really entirely an honor system," says Bernick.
So, what qualifies as "looking for a job?"