Workforce agency adds staff, phone

ALBUQUERQUE (KRQE) - The state agency handling unemployment claims has beefed up staff and Web site but the jobless are still having a hard time getting through.

Like many would-be claimants, KRQE News 13 again encountered a busy signal earlier today.

"We are meeting twice a week," Department of Workforce Solutions spokesperson Carrie Moritomo said. "We realize that this is a big situation for many New Mexicans, and so we are earnestly trying to improve our services."

Without being able to file an initial claim either by phone or online, someone newly unemployed cannot access any benefits, she added. However anyone eligible for benefits will get paid once they get through no matter how long it takes.

With two additional lines added, extended hours and 15 new staff positions just filled the lines shouldn't be as busy. Another five people may be hired as well, Moritomo said.

"We know that we have a high volume of calls," she said. "We continue to evaluate everything that we are doing.

"We don't know necessarily what further we can do at this point."

The department has added a new Web server, so Moritomo said she is encouraging people to file claims online rather than over the phone. She also suggested anyone getting an error message from the Web site delete the cookies from the private data on their computers and try again.