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Bartenders, receptionists, construction workers, hairdressers and dozens of other furloughed and laid-off workers have signed a letter to Gov. Tom Wolf, calling on him to put more people in the office to answer calls from people who have filed claims.
"They are asking particularly that the state provide communication, provide phone lines, so that people can find out what is going on with their benefits," said John Dodds, director of Philadelphia Unemployment Project, which advocates for the city's unemployed and impoverished by providing certain services.
"It is not that high tech. Take some of the people that were laid off and put them out there and tell people what the status of their claims are," he said.
He says there were problems even before the Coronavirus, but more so now with more than a million and half people in the state out of work, with no income.
"People are in desperate straits, and they can’t even find out what’s happening with their benefits. Are they are going to get benefits? Are they not? Is there a problem? Is there not a problem?" Dodds said.
"At least tell people, 'Looks it's a problem. We are going to fix it,'" he said. "They don’t even get that. They get absolutely nothing."
He says one woman called 400 times to no avail. Another man called 50 times one day just before lunch.
"It’s really unacceptable," said Dodds.
The governor’s office did not respond to a request for comment but forwarded it to the state's Department of Labor and Industry.
The department acknowledged the frustration.
“The historic surge in people needing unemployment compensation is unparalleled and we understand the long wait times for calls and emails is frustrating. It is for us too.”