Every week at All Saints Church we put our faith into action. This week we are asking everyone to sign a letter to Governor Newsom urging that he take steps to correct problems occurring at California’s Employment Development Department, or EDD.

As a result of the economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, the State of California received an unprecedented surge in the number of unemployment claims, such that maintaining high standards of service would be difficult with even the best of preparedness and management.  Unfortunately, California’s Employment Development Department (EDD) was neither sufficiently prepared nor effectively managed.

While we recognize the significant efforts undertaken these past ten months to bolster the agency’s ability to process this high number of claims, including expanding call center capacity both through additional personnel and additional hours of operation, inefficient processes and systems led to unreasonably long delays for many in receiving desperately needed benefit assistance.  As of this writing, the backlog of delayed claims was 941,000.

These delays are preventing unemployed Californians from receiving funds urgently needed to pay for essentials in a pandemic situation where finding alternative employment is not a viable option due to forced closures of many businesses.

EDD director Rita Saenz, in response to an audit conducted by State Auditor Elaine Howle, has said that the agency has not had adequate resources to address these issues, and that “the government needs to make investments… in infrastructure, technology, funding, and staff training… [to] prioritize ensuring access to the most vulnerable.”

We urge Governor Newsom to direct whatever resources are necessary to allow Rita Saenz and the EDD to transform itself into an agency that is responsive to all residents who call upon it for assistance in times of need, an agency that is a source of relief rather than a source of additional stress and anxiety, an agency for which Californians can be proud.

Click here to call on Governor Newsom to direct to EDD whatever resources are needed to bring their operation up to the level of service that Californians deserve.