30% Waiting For Unemployment Checks

Close to half a million people have lost their jobs in Alabama since the start of the coronavirus pandemic, and the Department of Labor admitted about thirty percent of those people are still waiting for unemployment benefits.

Cosmotolgists and hair stylists are in.

She rents a booth at a salon.

So she's considered self employed.

The state told me it's now getting around to the claims of self employed and gig workers this week.

Jenna is left hoping for the best.

I know it was a last min thing they had to wait and get guidelines from the federal government on the pandemic unemployment.

I know they had to get a system in place but i feel like five weeks later we should have gotten something.

Jenna daniels is growing more frustrated by the day.

Daniel: oh yeah i've tried calling and calling.

One of the forms it gave the option to fax.

I tried for two days and it never went through.

Daniels told me she calls the alabama department of labor multiple times a day and everyday..

But never gets through.

Daniel 8:42: they said they hired a call center and added 100 people to take calls so why isn't it getting easier to get through to them?

2: 35 me: how frustrating has this been for you?

Daniel: it's been very frustrating you know your bill collectors want their money.

We've all got car payments and rent and different things and not knowing when your going to get your money you can't tell people when your going to pay your bills.

It's getting to the point when you get concerned about groceries.

The alabama department of labor told me they have a tsunami of claims. it's contracted with a call center and moved about 120 employees to answering calls... but people like daniels still can't get through.

26 hutchison- we completely understand the frustration we understand the urgency.

We're working day and night to correct as many issues as we can and streamline this process so that we can go ahead and get those benefits paid daniels told me she understands no one was prepared for this but feels failed by the system at this point and wants the state to do better because her livelihood and others depends on it.

In the shoals bt