Still waiting for unemployment payments? Some Idahoans have gone without for 11 weeks [View all]

Some jobless Idahoans still await unemployment compensation 11 weeks after Gov. Brad Little declared a state of emergency over the coronavirus pandemic.

The Idaho Department of Labor, struggling with the surge in claims that began in mid-March, appears to be making progress. It began paying $600 federally funded supplements to the state’s regular weekly payments in late April. In mid-May, it began making federally funded payments to self-employed people not normally eligible for unemployment compensation.

Late Friday, the department issued a news release saying that it has contracted with a call center to handle questions from claimants starting Monday.

Complaints to the Statesman from Idahoans worried because they haven’t been paid have diminished in recent weeks, though they’re still coming. Claims are falling as some Idahoans return to work, but the department’s phone lines remain jammed, with some users reporting that the phone system hangs up on them automatically after they wait on hold for nearly an hour.

Read more: https://www.idahostatesman.com/news/rebuild/article243114136.html