Quick Statistics Data Definitions

Below are definitions to commonly used terms in the Disability Insurance (DI) and Paid Family Leave (PFL) programs.

Average Weekly Benefit Amount

The average weekly benefit amount is the typical weekly benefit amount paid to an eligible DI or PFL recipient.

Benefits Paid

Benefits paid is the amount of benefits paid to all eligible DI or PFL recipients during a specific month.

Contribution Rate

California workers pay mandatory contributions to reimburse the Disability Fund for DI and PFL coverage. The contribution rate is the percentage withheld from the wages of employees who are covered by DI and PFL programs.

Disability Fund Balance

DI and PFL are State mandated and funded through employee payroll deductions. The fund balance is the amount that remains in the Disability Fund after all DI and PFL benefits have been paid for the month.

Initial Claims Filed

Initial claims filed is the total number of DI or PFL applications that were filed during a specific month.

Maximum Weekly Benefit Amount

The maximum weekly benefit amount is the maximum weekly benefit amount paid to an eligible DI or PFL recipient.

Maximum Worker Contribution

Maximum worker contribution is the maximum amount withheld from an employee’s yearly wages who is covered by DI and PFL.

Minimum Weekly Benefit Amount

The minimum weekly benefit amount is the minimum weekly benefit amount paid to an eligible DI or PFL recipient.

Taxable Wage Ceiling

The taxable wage ceiling is the maximum yearly wage that is subject to DI and PFL withholding.

Average Hourly Wage

This is the average hourly payment for labor or services performed for all occupations. It includes tips and commissions, but does not include overtime pay.

Civilian Labor Force

The civilian labor force is the total amount of civilian people, age 16 or older, who live in a specific geographic area and are either employed or counted as unemployed. This category does not include the military.

Employment

This term refers to people who live in a specific geographic area who are working. People with more than one job are only counted once.

Industry Employment

Industry employment refers to the number of employees working for employers in a specific geographic area. People with more than one job are counted twice.

Seasonally Adjusted

This term refers to seasonal changes that have been removed or discounted.

Unemployment

Unemployment refers to all people over the age of 16 who did not work during the survey week. To be included, they must have tried to find a job within the past four weeks and have been available to work.

Unemployment Rate

The unemployment rate is the number of unemployed people divided by the number of people in the labor force. This number is expressed as a percentage.

Tax Collections

Tax collections are cumulative dollars collected for each tax in the current state fiscal year.

Unemployment Insurance (UI)

Unemployment Insurance provides temporary payments to people who are unemployed through no fault of their own. It is an employer-paid tax. Tax-rated employers pay a percentage on the first $7,000 in wages paid to each employee in a calendar year. The UI rate schedule is determined annually.

School Employee Fund

The School Employee Fund (SEF) is a joint, pooled-risk fund that collects Unemployment Insurance (UI) contributions paid by public schools and community college districts. Money deposited into the SEF is used to reimburse the UI Fund for the cost of UI benefits paid to former school employees who chose this option instead of paying the tax-rated method.

State Disability Insurance

State Disability Insurance (SDI) provides temporary benefit payments to workers for non-work-related disabilities, family care leave, or bonding. SDI is a deduction from employees’ wages. Employers withhold a percentage for SDI on employee’s wages in a calendar year, up to the taxable wage limit. The SDI rate and taxable wage limit are determined annually.

California Personal Income Tax

California Personal Income Tax (PIT) is a tax levied by the Franchise Tax Board (FTB) on the income of California residents and the income of nonresidents within California. We administer the reporting, collecting, and enforcement of PIT withholdings. California PIT is administered by FTB and EDD for the Governor to provide resources for California public services. These can include schools, public parks, roads, and health and human services. California PIT is withheld from employees’ pay based on the Employee’s Withholding Allowance Certificate (Form W-4 or DE 4) on file with their employers.

Employment Training Tax

The Employment Training Tax (ETT) provides funds to train employees in targeted industries to improve the competitiveness of California businesses. The ETT funds promote a healthy labor market by helping California businesses invest in a skilled and productive workforce and develop the skills of workers who directly produce or deliver goods and services. The ETT is an employer-paid tax. Employers subject to ETT pay 0.1 percent on the first $7,000 in wages paid to each employee in a calendar year.

Contingent Fund (CF)

The Contingent Fund (CF) was created as a depository for penalties and interest collected in the administration of the UI, SDI, ETT and PIT programs. The CF collections are used to fund our programs. Any unused monies are transferred to the State’s General Fund for use by other State agencies for various programs.

Unemployment Tax Rate Schedule

Each year, the Unemployment Insurance tax rate schedule is determined by the ratio between the Unemployment Insurance Fund balance on September 30 and total wages paid by all employers. All tax-rated employers who pay unemployment taxes to have their employees covered by the Unemployment program are rated under the same schedule. The unemployment tax rate schedule is revised once a year.

Tax Wage Ceiling

Federal law requires that the minimum taxable wage ceiling is the first $7,000 paid in wages to each employee during a calendar year. The taxable wage ceiling is the maximum amount of a covered employee’s wages during a calendar year upon which state unemployment insurance taxes are assessed in accordance with the state law in effect at the end of the year. The tax wage ceiling can only change under state or federal law.

Minimum Weekly Benefit Amount

This is the lowest weekly benefit amount for a week of total unemployment as provided under state or federal Unemployment Insurance law. This amount can only change under state or federal law.

Maximum Weekly Benefit Amount

This is the highest weekly benefit amount for a week of total unemployment as provided under state or federal Unemployment Insurance law. This amount can only change under state or federal law.

Average Weekly Benefit Amount

This is the average weekly benefit amount paid for a week of total unemployment. It is determined by dividing weeks compensated for total unemployment into benefits paid for total unemployment. It does not include federal programs like Unemployment Compensation for Federal Employees (UCFE) and Unemployment Compensation for Ex-Service members (UCX).

Initial Claims

This is the total number of new and additional regular unemployment insurance claims filed statewide for a specific month. It does not include federal programs like Unemployment Compensation for Federal Employees (UCFE) and Unemployment Compensation for Ex-Service members (UCX).

Weeks Paid

This is the total number of weeks of regular unemployment insurance benefits paid statewide for a specific month. It does not include federal programs like Unemployment Compensation for Federal Employees (UCFE) and Unemployment Compensation for Ex-Service members (UCX).

Benefits Paid

This is the total amount of unemployment insurance benefits paid for a specific month. It includes all regular program payments like Unemployment Compensation for Federal Employees (UCFE) and Unemployment Compensation for Ex-Service members (UCX).

Trust Fund Balance

This is the current balance of the state’s UI Trust Fund. It is used to pay and administer benefits. The Unemployment Trust Fund is a fund established in the Treasury of United States which contains all monies deposited by state agencies to the credit of their unemployment fund accounts and Federal unemployment taxes collected by the Internal Revenue Service.

Insured Unemployment Rate

This is the average number of unemployment weeks divided by an average of four quarters of employment reported by employers. The four quarters used are the most recently available information. It is a 13-week moving average. 

Employers Who Accessed CalJOBS^SM

These are employers who accessed CalJOBS to enter a job listing, update their business profile, or search job seeker resumes within the report period.

Job Seekers Who Accessed CalJOBS

These are job seekers who accessed CalJOBS to enter a resume, update their personal information record, search for jobs, or received a service from an EDD staff person within the report period.

New Employer Registrations in CalJOBS

This is the total number of California employers who registered in CalJOBS during the report period. These employers have been verified as authentic California employers and are a subset of the Employers Who Accessed CalJOBS.

Active Job Openings in CalJOBS

This is the total number of job openings listed in CalJOBS during the report period.

New Job Seeker Registrations in CalJOBS

This is the number of job seekers who registered in CalJOBS during the report period. This is a subset of Job Seekers Who Accessed CalJOBS.