Introduction: When “Help” Is Not Charity but a Right
This article is part of the “Robbed in Plain Sight” series.
See the full series here: Robbed in Plain Sight!
Unemployment insurance is often spoken of as assistance.
That framing is misleading.
Unemployment benefits are earned. They are deferred wages—paid into over decades by workers and employers alike, with the explicit promise that support will be there when work ends through no fault of the worker.
This article is about my experience with the California Employment Development Department (EDD) after a retaliatory firing in Fresno, California—and what happens when a system designed to protect workers instead exercises arbitrary power over them.
The Context: Fired, No Severance, and No Safety Net
After being fired from my job following ethical concerns raised at work, I received:
- No severance pay
- No transitional support
- No acknowledgment of decades of work
At the same time, my wife, son, and I remained in Fresno to care for my aging father as he approached the end of his life. We lived off savings while I sought clarity from the system I had paid into for decades.
This was my first time ever applying for unemployment benefits.
What the Law Actually Requires
Under California law, unemployment benefits may be denied only if specific conditions are met—such as voluntary resignation without cause or serious misconduct.
I met none of those criteria.
I was fired.
I did not quit.
I did not commit misconduct.
Based on the law and the facts, my eligibility should have been straightforward.
The “Likely Denial” That Wasn’t a Decision
When I contacted EDD, I was told something unusual.
They said my case was a “likely denial” because I was fired “for cause.”
But they also said it was not a denial.
They told me they would determine whether my request would be approved or denied and notify me.
That notification never came.
No formal denial letter.
No approval.
No explanation in writing.
I called repeatedly.
I waited.
I assumed—reasonably—that the denial had occurred.
Years Later, the Truth Emerges
Years passed.
When I later applied for Social Security benefits at age 62, I learned something shocking:
According to EDD, my unemployment claim had never been denied.
Instead, they said:
- I was supposed to have submitted ongoing forms
- I had not done so
- Therefore, no benefits were paid
This was the first time I learned my request had not been formally rejected.
I was told they would send me the required forms.
An Impossible Demand Disguised as Compliance
When the forms arrived, EDD gave me three days to complete documentation covering three full years.
I worked relentlessly and complied.
They then informed me I had made an error and would need to redo every form.
This time, I was given five days.
The deadlines felt punitive, pedantic, and arbitrary—but this was my money. I had paid into the system, and I wanted what was owed.
I complied again.
“We’ll Think About It”
After submitting everything, I was told EDD would “think about it.”
They did.
The final response amounted to this:
No.
No rocking chair.
No written explanation.
No substantive reasoning.
No acknowledgment of the years paid in or the effort to comply.
It felt less like due process and more like the arbitrary authority of a schoolyard bully:
“I thought about it and decided to say no.”
That line is metaphor.
But the experience was real.
What Made This Especially Unjust
Several facts made this outcome especially troubling:
- This was my first unemployment claim in a decades-long IT career
- I had paid into the system consistently
- I had no severance from Community Medical Centers
- I was caring for a dying parent
- I complied with every request, however unreasonable
Unemployment insurance is not discretionary charity.
It is a contract.
And contracts mean little if one party holds unchecked power.
Bureaucracy as a Weapon
What stood out was not confusion or inefficiency.
It was control.
- Time pressure used to force errors
- Vague status that prevented appeal
- Shifting requirements
- No written denial until it was too late
When systems operate this way, they do not need to accuse.
They simply exhaust.
Why This Matters to Others
If this can happen to:
- an older worker
- with a clean record
- who paid in for decades
- who complied repeatedly
then it can happen to anyone.
Especially:
- older professionals
- caregivers
- those without legal representation
- those already weakened by job loss
The safety net fails precisely when people are most vulnerable.
A Question Worth Asking
If benefits you paid for can be withheld without explanation,
if compliance is met with ever-changing demands,
and if “thinking about it” replaces due process—
what protection does the system really offer?
Previous Articles in this series:
Punished for Questioning the System
Next in this series:
Caregiving Punished: How Property Taxes and Bureaucracy Crush Families After Death
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