Labor Department still overwhelmed with calls, emails as frustration mounts for unemployed
For about four hours Sunday, the online filing system used by the Delaware Department of Labor for claimants to file for weekly unemployment benefits crashed.
Coupled with long wait times on the phone to speak with a live person and reports of emails going answered, that technological failure underscored an issue that has forced states around the country – Delaware included – to beef up staffing.
The number of staff members dedicated to responding to questions and inquiries regarding unemployment insurance benefits at the Delaware Department of Labor has quintupled in recent weeks, but the 85-person staff, up from 17, is still struggling to keep up. Claimants are reporting long wait times, busy signals and emails being left without a response.
Nearly 73,000 people in Delaware have filed unemployment claims since March 15, more than the department received in the previous 26-month period, according to the Labor Department, as the coronavirus pandemic continues to wreak havoc on the economy and force millions around the country out of work.
Read more: https://www.delawareonline.com/story/news/coronavirus-in-delaware/2020/04/22/labor-department-beef-up-staff-response-overwhelming-claims-volume-unemployment-in-delaware/3002312001/