Jobless claims still tough to file

ALBUQUERQUE (KRQE) - Unemployed New Mexicans will get their benefits but can only be patient in dealing with clogged phone lines and an overloaded Web site, the state's labor secretary said in an interview Monday.

The phones and Web site jobless people are supposed to use to apply for benefits have been hopelessly clogged for weeks.

That could cause some people could to miss their filing deadlines.

When Labor Secretary Betty Sparrow Doris sat down for an interview with KRQE News 13 on Monday promised unemployed New Mexicans will get all their benefits.

"That is correct," Doris said when asked if callers will not be penalized for the time it took them to finally get through.

Doris oversees the state Department of Workforce Solutions which requires jobless New Mexicans who qualify for unemployment benefits to file a claim either over the phone of on the department Web site.

"If the reason that they have not filed is that they were not able to get through and that is expressed, they will not be penalized," Doris said. "We're not going to penalize people for something that is certainly is not their fault."

She added she has tried to call herself to know what the situation is and had not gotten through within the last few days.

Some would-be claimants said they have called hundreds of times or over several weeks without success.

"We continue to look at ways in which we might be able to improve our services actually on a daily basis," Doris said.

In the last couple of weeks the department has reported it hired 15 more call-center workers, added phone lines and a faster Web server.

Without additional resources reorganizing the system or returning to having claimants appear in person is not possible, Doris said. The department is working with a budget that has not kept pace with the recent spike in unemployment, she added.

One solution may be to shift other employees into the call center to help, Doris said.

Gov. Bill Richardson on Monday told News 13 the recent spike in layoffs may be partly to blame. However he also said the system problems are unacceptable.

If you've experienced any problems with the Workforce hotline or online system, News 13 would like to hear from you. Visit the KRQE.com homepage or click here to access the News Tips form.