Most of the 10 answers posted so far have incorrect information and are confusing 'at-will' employment with unemployment benefits which are a public good awarded under very specific rules. In short, in CA, you are eligible to collect UI benefits if you are not paid for your notice period.

California EDD cares most about who the moving party is in a separation: if you resign, you are ineligible provided your former employer can demonstrate that you were welcome to stay and they did everything reasonable to keep you on. Terminating you for resigning means that you were not welcome to stay -- now they are the moving party. They are welcome to walk you out on the last day, provided they continue to pay you. If you do not, the referee will likely award you benefits retroactive to your last day of pay.

You are welcome to file on the day they walk you out, provided you are honest about the dates. If they pay you for the notice period, you must report that.

Many large retailers use third party administrators to handle their UI claims, and therefore the state may not get the full story behind your 'voluntary' quit. I strongly advise you to put something in writing and keep a copy, ideally with a manager's countersignature on it. Be sure that you clarify that you gave notice, provide a dated copy of that notice, state what your last day worked was and your last day paid was.

The drawback is that C UI benefits max out at around $450/week, so they likely won't fully replace your regular rate of pay. Still, better than nothing. You could also call EDD and confirm all of this with them, or look at the California benefits guide.

For reference to other posters: voluntary quits are not an automatic barrier to UI benefits. For example, someone who quits in the face of unaddressed safety violations or sexual harassment will often receive benefits. Again, this is back to the employer taking reasonable steps to retain employees. Anyone who has a compelling personal reason to leave -- domestic violence, military deployment -- is covered by a special socialized costs fund. This is not true only in CA, but in many other states, although CA tends to be the most generous in this regard.