Demand for unemployment benefits rising in Washington

Vancouver resident Andrew Briggs has been waiting for his first unemployment check since he lost his job right before Thanksgiving.

“My last paycheck was in December, and I had to pay rent for January, February and March with no income whatsoever,” said Briggs, 38. “I’m lucky I’m not on the street somewhere.”

Initial unemployment claims are up 9 percent year over year, while weekly unemployment claims are 22 percent higher than this time last year, according to the Washington Employment Securities Department. Claims filed statewide ranged from roughly 5,900 to 6,600 per week in February.

“Demand for unemployment benefits continues to grow amid increasing private-sector layoffs and customers staying on unemployment longer than in previous years,” agency spokesperson Meghan Porter said by email.

Stuck in limbo

It’s typical for unemployment claims to grow between October and March as many seasonal workers are temporarily laid off, according to the unemployment agency. In addition, several major Washington companies including Amazon, T-Mobile and Microsoft recently have laid off large numbers of employees.

The agency’s goal is to pay the first week of benefits within 21 days of a claim being approved, Porter said.

“About 7 in 10 claims meet that threshold of first-pay timeliness — the first time someone receives a benefits payment,” she said.

A claim may extend beyond the 21-day period for a variety of reasons, Porter said.

“Common issues include the reasons for separation from a job, work search requirements and wage earnings reporting. Issues may require research, outreach and response time from many sources,” Porter said.

Briggs lost his job as an automotive technician Nov. 20, a Thursday. The following Monday, he applied for unemployment.

“They told me to watch for an email or a letter if they needed anything else. But I didn’t hear anything for several weeks,” he said.

Briggs then tried to contact the unemployment office but was met with long wait times on the phone. He also emailed the office several times.

When he finally got through to someone by phone, he was told the process could take anywhere from four to 16 weeks. At that point, Briggs said, he was on week 12 of trying to file for unemployment.

“Then, on the very last day of the 16-week period, they emailed me a questionnaire with about 25 questions,” Briggs said.

He said those questions asked for information he already had provided when he first made a claim.

Briggs recently landed a new job. But he still is waiting for a decision on the weeks he was unemployed.

“It’s been more of an emotional struggle because all of the money I’ve been saving for the last couple of years is now just wiped out,” Briggs said.

When The Columbian called the state’s unemployment line, an automatic message said the line’s hours have been updated “to allow agents to focus on processing claims, which will help customers get paid faster during this time of high demand for unemployment benefits.”

The unemployment agency recently began a pilot program that adjusts its call center hours to close earlier on Tuesday and Thursday, so staff can focus on processing claims. According to a news release, the program completed 37 percent more claim tasks despite rising unemployment demand.

Like Briggs, 54-year-old single mother Monica Cochran of Vancouver also has been waiting for unemployment benefits.

After being let go from her job as a business development manager after nine years, Cochran immediately applied for unemployment benefits in January. She said she has been recertifying her claim each week since then but has not received any updates or payments.

Recently, when she reached out to the unemployment office, she was told her case still was being reviewed and that the office was “taking cases as they come in.”

Cochran said she faced long wait periods when trying to get a hold of unemployment staff.

She said she would begin calling the office at 7:59 a.m. — one minute before the call center opens — yet would still wait nearly an hour for a representative.

During her blip of unemployment, Cochran applied for every job she could. She even applied to work for the unemployment call center, yet she never heard back.

Luckily, Cochran always pays her rent two months in advance and recently got a new job that starts this week.