While Local 871 hopes that you are employed as much as you'd like, we recognize that the nature of free-lance work means that occasionally you will need to file for Unemployment Insurance (UI).  We have heard from Local 871 members that they are finding it difficult to complete the current California Unemployment Insurance Online Application because the job classification descriptions are confusing and often irrelevant.

To fix this problem,  the California IATSE Council (CIC) and Local 871 have worked on your behalf with the Unemployment Insurance Department of the California Employment Development Department (EDD). This is the agency that administers California’s unemployment insurance program. They are required to use the federal government job classification descriptions, so we had to work with that reality to get the best solution possible. 
 
We are glad to tell you that we have successfully negotiated some significant changes in Local 871’s job classifications that work to your benefit. CIC has created step-by-step instructions (see below) of how Local 871 members can apply online for CA UI. Please note there is a job classification page which will help you determine which classification applies to you.

We recommend viewing this page in full screen - click the arrows in the bottom right.  To download this as a PDF,  click here.