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My question involves unemployment benefits for the state of: CA
I have been sent a notice of overpayment with penalty because it was determined "I was not available for work." During my benefits period I was looking for work while raising support for a role beginning in six months.
I did not take any income from the support that was being raised and didn't have a start date with the organization until six months later.
Do I have a case to have received those benefits?
It certainly can't hurt to appeal the decision. Gather up your documentation and do so.
It's not like you'll be assessed extra penalties for appealing.
The issue, presumably, is that you're excluding yourself from anything but short-term, temporary employment.
Does that go against looking for work to qualify for benefits?
Are you seeking permanent employment? If you got a permanent job, would you abandon the missionary plans?
If I got a permanent position I would see how the missionary plans fit into the situation. Hard to answer in fictional situation.
It's not a fictional situation. The question they will ask, "if you're offered a permanent position would you take it?". Any other answer but "YES" and you lose your benefits....and that's not fictional. :D
If you're raising money for a missionary trip, that means you don't intend to work...you lose your benefits.
Does working to raise support for a position, like creating a business, make me not available for work?
I think you are trying to wordsmith this too much. The applicable requirements are that you are ready and willing to immediately accept work and are actively looking for work. (There are other requirements, but these apply to the situation that you describe.) Coining your own phase "working to raise support for a position" possibly hoping that the terminology will confuse EDD, and they will give you the benefit of the doubt raises a red flag and will (and obviously has) be interpreted to your detriment.
When you were asked earlier in this thread if you would accept a position if offered, your answer was that you "would see how the missionary plans fit into the situation." A reasonable person would interpret that the "missionary plans" are your priority, and that you are not available for work and are probably not seriously "actively looking for work".
Unemployment Insurance payments are not government assistance to fund someone while preparing for missionary work (or, in relation to the question in your last post, preparing to create a business). They are to provide assistance to people (California definition) who have received enough wages to establish a claim, are unemployed through no fault of their own, are actively looking for work, and are ready and willing to immediately accept work.
Scttt67,
Thank you for your response.
Ok, understood. My question is now when does becoming unavailable for work happen? When I start to ask people for support or when a gift is given to the organization? Is there documentation needed to determine that date? Or is it open for interpretation?
I was not trying to wordsmith to confuse, I was trying to equate it to another term for better understanding.
Thanks for your insight and opinion.