I'm am currently 19 weeks pregnant. My due date is March 13th. I am the only employee at my company, and my boss is replacing me as of January 15th because I am pregnant.

From what I undertand, SDI will cover up to 4 weeks before I give birth if my doctor warrants it, and 6 weeks after. However, in the FAQs on the State web site, this is the information provided regarding eligibility for these benefits:

Question: I quit my job (or was laid-off) and now I'm disabled. Am I eligible for SDI?
Answer: It depends on your situation. To qualify for SDI benefits, you must be actively connected to the labor market, either working or looking for work at the time your disability begins. We encourage you to file a claim for benefits, even if you're unsure of your labor market status.

There is a possibility that I will still be doing independent contractor work for my employer at the time that I am eligible for disability. Or, should I just ask my employer to keep me on the payroll for a few extra weeks without actually paying me so that I can show I am still 'employed' with the company? She would probably work with me on this. Or am I eligible without this?

BTW - I have posted here before and was advised that I may have a claim to file privately, even if the State/Federal laws do not protect employees of companies with less than 5 employees. I had a consultation with a lawyer yesterday, and he advised that I had very little leverage legally, and that it would not be worth it for me to file. Thanks for the advice, though. I'm sitting tight and hoping that my employer will be able to keep me on longer than she thinks she'll be able to, or that my husband will have made so much money over the Holidays that we'll be OK without the extra $6k of income.

As long as you are actively looking for work, even while you are contracting, you should be fine.

I can certainly do that, look for work after I am laid off here, but the chances that someone would hire me at 8 months pregnant are slim. ? It seems a futile effort, but I will do it if it will get me SDI benefits.

What about if my current employer continued to pay me through payroll for the contracted work that I do for her, keeping me on as an "employee" through my due date?

If you could keep working (and being paid through payroll) until your disability leave started, that would also allow you to be eligible for benefits.

Thank you. And is there a minimum of hours/wages that I would need to be making to qualify?

http://www.edd.cahwnet.gov/direp/dicfp.htm#YOUR%20BENEFIT%20AMOUNTS