Residents of Pennsylvania on the hunt for unemployment compensation no longer need to pack a lunch while they wait on hold. Gov. Josh Shapiro's administration, with a bipartisan boost, has slashed call wait times from over an hour to just 20 minutes. The Department of Labor & Industry, led by Secretary Nancy A. Walker, reports that since late February, callers to the Unemployment Compensation Service Centers have hung on the line significantly less before reaching a human being.
According to a press release from the state, the wait time win comes courtesy of more than 380 new UC interviewers hired this past January – a number achieved thanks to the previous year's budget largesse.
"The day before Thanksgiving in 2022, claimants averaged 20 attempts to reach UC by phone. In 2023, on that same day, it took only one attempt for most claimants to reach a UC staffer by phone. That's incredible progress in one year, thanks to the commitment of the UC team and a bipartisan budget that enabled us to hire more intake interviewers," Secretary Walker said in an issuance obtained by the Pennsylvania Department of Labor & Industry. But they're not done, with plans to pump more money into the system to continue refining customer service.
Getting help with Unemployment Compensation has taken on some fresh forms, too. A new helpdesk phone number now stands ready to book in-person UC Connect appointments at PA CareerLink® locations. It's part of a push to diversify service methods after the establishment of the Service Improvement and Infrastructure Fund which, if Gov. Shapiro has his way, will see a $68 million increase in the next budget to keep the momentum going. If not, L&I might have to make do with the bare federal minimum.
2023 was a record year under Gov. Shapiro's watch, with the Department of Labor & Industry distributing over $1.7 billion in UC benefits to about 326,000 Pennsylvanians. With the recent improvements, February 2024 alone saw 39,683 claims processed and $203,625,633 in benefits handed out to 113,653 eligible folk. Service, it seems, is back on the map in Pennsylvania's Unemployment Compensation system.
