California Employment Development Department (EDD) Vietnamese Customer Service

This phone number is an official number for the California Employment Development Department, but it's only meant for those who speak Vietnamese. According to WorldAtlas.com, Vietnamese is the fifth-most common language spoken in California, with more than half a million residents using it regularly.

As such, it's one of eight languages to have unemployment services offered entirely in that language for Californians. The other available languages in the state include English, Spanish, Cantonese, Mandarin, Tagalog, Korean and Armenian. Anyone who speaks a language that does not have its own dedicated phone number can dial an additional number, which will provide interpretation services at no charge.

When you dial this number, you are greeted entirely in Vietnamese. No English is spoken when calling, so if you don't understand Vietnamese, you won't be able to use this number for anything. As I speak nothing besides English and elementary Spanish, I quickly hung up after discovering that this number conducts business entirely in Vietnamese.

Given how prevalent the language is in the state and that California has an abundance of customers, I think it makes sense to have a specific number dedicated to such a common language. The state doesn't need to divide itself into regions like other government numbers might for a language spoken by just 1.5% of its residents, but it makes complete sense to have a number across the state just for those who speak that language.

Vietnamese isn't an easy language to learn or understand for non-natives, and having a number dedicated solely to this language ensures that new residents of California from Vietnam can still find work and collect unemployment benefits should they find themselves out of work. With many immigrants often taking time to find long-term employment when they arrive in the United States, having a number dedicated to a familiar language can help them keep money coming in as they assimilate into America and the English language.

Like with California's other numbers that involve speaking to a live person, this number can only be accessed five days a week between the hours of 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. Pacific Time. A self-service line is available 24 hours a day, but it only operates in English, making its use limited unless a Vietnamese speaker has a translator available to help them understand the automated system.

Obviously, it's difficult for me to fairly gauge how helpful this number is without speaking Vietnamese. If you are not fluent in Vietnamese, do not use this number; you will not understand anything on the other end.