|
 The
new availability of Emergency Unemployment Benefits from the
federal government has significantly increased the call
volume to Nevada’s Department of Employment, Training &
Rehabilitation, but the agency is making the necessary
adjustments to minimize the wait time for callers, Governor
Jim Gibbons announced today.
Nevada’s
DETR has decided to double its telephone claims staff to
handle the high volume of calls being generated by a
combination of emergency benefits claimants and regular
unemployment claims. Staff has been approved to work
overtime to continue handling claims, and the phone lines
will also be open on Saturdays until the volume of calls
subsides.
Regular
claims can continue to be filed on-line at
www.expressclaim.org, but emergency benefit claims can
only be filed over the telephone.
“We are
committed to ensuring that Nevada’s unemployed workers who
are eligible for these benefits receive the attention
necessary to process their claims in an efficient manner,”
Gibbons said. “We understand the importance of these
benefits to the families who are depending on them, and we
ask for patience as we attempt to make this process run as
smoothly as possible.”
On July 2
the Governor signed an agreement with the U.S. Department of
Labor for Nevada to participate in the federally funded
extension of unemployment benefits program authorized as
part of House Resolution (H.R.) 2642, the Supplemental
Appropriations Act 2008.
Recently,
DETR mailed more than 40,000 letters to Nevadans informing
them they may be eligible for emergency unemployment
insurance benefits as a result of the recently passed
measure.
Under the
Emergency Unemployment Compensation provisions, additional
benefits may be paid to eligible workers who have exhausted
all other unemployment benefits. The program provides up to
half of a person’s original claim entitlement, or up to 13
weeks of additional benefits with the same monetary amount
they received under regular benefits, said Cindy Jones,
Employment Security Division administrator and DETR deputy
director.
DETR’s
Employment Security Division has processed almost 4,000
claims for emergency benefits since Monday, when the
upgraded system for accepting new claims became operational.
This is in addition to the 5,300 calls for regular benefits
handled by DETR’s Employment Security Division during that
same three-day period.
"Callers
are advised to patiently hold and not hang up and call
again, as they will only lose their place in line," Jones
said. "Another important piece of advice is to use a land
line and not a cell phone. We understand callers may be
frustrated, but we are working diligently to ensure that
each call is handled as quickly as possible. We also urge
regular claim filers to utilize the website 24 hours a day."
“These
state workers have done an excellent job in preparing for
this increased volume of callers,” Gibbons said. “DETR only
had six days of lead time from the President’s signing of
the bill to the start date of the program. Proactive
planning allowed Nevada to implement its program more
quickly than many other states, which is ultimately a
benefit to the claimants.”
Nevada’s
unemployment insurance program had already been experiencing
an almost 50 percent increase in regular claims due to the
state’s continued rise in unemployment. The unemployment
rate for June was 6.4 percent, the highest it has been in 15
years. |
