Processing snags jobless benefits

It's been nearly three weeks since President Barack Obama signed a bill to extend jobless benefits for unemployed Americans, but many Nevadans have yet to receive any money.

State officials say they're working as fast as they can, but that doesn't help people who have been without income for several weeks. One problem is an antiquated computer system, for which a $35 million fix is three years away.

"I feel this big when I have to ask for a gallon of gas," said Jim Fuller, 55, holding his thumb and forefinger an inch apart. "Nevada is hurting; why is there a hang-up?"

Benefits were suspended for 40,000 to 50,000 of Nevada's estimated 120,000 unemployment claimants.

The bill Obama signed July 22 was a move to reinstate weekly support for an estimated 2.5 million people nationally by extending the Emergency Unemployment Compensation program.

It covered benefits for people whose 26 weeks of state-funded benefits had expired, leaving them dependent on a federal extension that had run out June 2.

The result was seven weeks of suspended benefits for people who had already been unemployed for six months or more.

Within a week after Obama signed the bill, the Nevada Department of Employment, Training and Rehabilitation started reactivating lapsed claims. About half have been reactivated so far, and the remainder should be done by Friday.

As claims are reactivated, the employment department sends a letter to claimants, who then have to call in to file a claim and receive their benefits.

"It is like re starting a freight train; it is a slow process that just takes time," said department spokeswoman Mae Worthey. "I know people are in dire straits and they are desperate to get this money they need."

Both the backlog of claims that need reactivation and the volume of phone calls from claimants are stressing the benefits distribution system.

The backlog is a challenge because the core of a computer system that processes claims is about 30 years old. This means that department employees need to limit the amount of information they input in a day to prevent a crash.

The call volume is a challenge because the phone system is overloaded. As a result, many people receive a busy signal when they try to file a claim, before they even have a chance to wait on hold for an operator.

Last week, the phone system handled about 84,000 calls, 24,000 of which were handled by operators and 60,000 of which went through the automated system, Worthey said. The system can accommodate about 400 calls in the queue, after which callers get a busy signal.

"The busy signal is what I think is most frustrating to people," Worthey said. "You can't even get into the queue if you can't get through."

Department officials are in a difficult position. They're working overtime and on Saturdays to process claims as quickly as possible.

To manage the load, workers categorized payments into five tiers, four federal extensions and State Extended Benefits. They're processing each tier as rapidly as the system will allow.

"They can't press it any more because they are trying to prevent it from crashing," Worthey said.

A new computer system is being installed at a cost of about $35 million but will take more than three years to be operational, according to Cynthia Jones, department deputy director.

Meanwhile, frustration mounts. At 14.2 percent through June, Nevada has the nation's highest official rate of unemployment. Delays and interruptions affect people who have already exhausted savings and lost possessions.

Fuller said he has been without benefits for eight weeks, leaving him no money for necessities such as food, gasoline or a cell phone to aid in his job search.

Still, he maintains by hand in a notebook page after page of jobs for which he's applied to maintain eligibility for benefits -- which still haven't arrived in his bank account.

"I don't know where I'm going to eat dinner," he said. "I lost a house I've been paying on for six years."

John Ketzner, 59, said he hasn't received benefits since June 6.

A glazier, he said his last steady work was at the Cosmopolitan resort project on the Strip.

He described signing up to become eligible for benefits as a relatively straightforward process. But calling in to update his status and keep the money coming is an exercise in futility.

Ketzner spent part of Monday outside the JobConnect office repeatedly trying to call into the system, only to hear a busy signal.

He is eligible to receive benefits but hasn't been able to get through and file. Nevada JobConnect is part of a local/state network dedicated to developing the workforce of Nevada and is funded by federal tax revenue.

"I got signed up the first couple of days, but getting money out of the system is the problem," he said.

Contact reporter Benjamin Spillman at bspillman@ reviewjournal.com or 702-477-3861.