As NJ Unemployment Claims Reach 858K, Many Still Waiting For Help

TRENTON, NJ — Before the coronavirus outbreak hit, Tina Flick was working part-time as a medical receptionist in a doctor's office, but like thousands of New Jerseyans, found herself out of work when the doctor closed the office.

"I am paycheck to paycheck," Flick, who lives in Brick, said. She applied for unemployment, received a case number and was told she needed to claim on April 2. Her calls were met with a busy signal. Three weeks later, she's still trying to get help. "When you're told to call, there's no one to talk to. You can't even leave a message."

Flick is among thousands across the state still fighting for help more than six weeks after businesses started shutting down because of the outbreak, and the numbers of the unemployed keep rising: New Jersey's unemployment claims swelled to 858,000 this week, 10 times what it was a year ago, when 84,000 residents, according to the state Department of Labor.

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"I've written letters to (Gov. Phil) Murphy," said Flick, a single mother of two who is caring for her father as well. "I've tweeted. I've sent Facebook messages. I haven't received a single reply."

She's far from alone. A number of readers who have been trying to get assistance with unemployment claims in the midst of the coronavirus crisis reached out to Patch, sharing their frustrations with the process. The No. 1 complaint: the inability to speak to a human being to get some answers. Read more: NJ Coronavirus Updates: Here's What You Need To Know

Michele Rumsby and her daughter, both substitute teachers who found themselves without work when schools closed across the state on March 18, have been calling daily to speak to an agent.

"We try 20 to 30 times a day with no success," Rumsby, of Toms River, said. "I don’t know how long this can go on for. I actually start at 8 in the morning and it says all agents are busy please call back on another business day. I know we're not alone but we are now looking at 6 weeks of this."

The state continues to say it is processing more claims — $1 billion in unemployment benefits have been distributed since Murphy signed executive orders shutting down businesses, closing schools and telling people to stay at home — there are stilll many who grow increasingly worried about how they will feed their families and pay for their shelter.

Cheri Saxen of Tuckerton applied for unemployment and received one payment. "Then it stated we need to talk to a representative," she said. "It is now going on almost seven weeks and we can’t get through we call every day. It is our money and we can’t get it. We are desperate to get a hold of them as we have nothing for rent, bills, food."

"We have exhausted all our savings," said Greg Mace, who's a substitute teacher. "We can't afford food right now and other essentials."

Javier Moreno got an unemployment confirmation email on March 31, after applying on March 16. He hasn't been able to claim benefits either online or by phone. "No one has contacted him," his wife, Michelle said.

Suzanne Drelich of Lacey said her unemployment claim has been in pending mode since she filed. "It is impossible to get through to a live agent, I tried to email and just get an automated response," she said. "I am the sole support of myself. I have no other person living with me for support. I am a senior citizen also."

Christal Aberle of Brick said she has been trying to get answers for her family. Her husband drives for a package delivery service and has been out of work since late March, after he tested positive for the coronavirus. He also works with a company that installs audio and visual systems.

Both companies told him he needed a negative test for the virus to return to work. He applied for unemployment, Aberle said, because "plastered on the temp disability application says to apply for unemployment as they pay more."

His unemployment claim was rejected. And now Aberle is not sure what they will do.

"Bottom line is he, someone who works from 1 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Saturday, gets hit with a horrible virus and his government who promises to help denies us. Over $5,000 in debt now, mortgage due and the stimulus barely covered a week for a family of four."

"We appealed and applied for disability through," she said. "I dread receiving a still-positive result as he’s been 'having allergies' for a week or two past his fever breaking."

Flick is worried, too. She owned a small business in Point Pleasant, buying gold, Lenox china, expensive purses and the like, but when her mother was ill and hospitalized in 2018, Flick spent hours at her bedside. Friends and family pitched in and helped keep the business going, but without her personal touch, she lost customers and was forced to close her business. She had been working part-time at the doctor's office after being unemployed for six months. Now, she needs a paycheck, and soon.

"I'm just hovering in this no man's land," she said.

The state labor department had ramped up efforts to cope with the crush of claims, adding staff, equipping them to work from home and bringing in programmers to update decades-old computer programs.

"We are now pushing through about 60 percent of the claims requiring an agent review, so some workers have had their claim go through and they may not even know it," said Angela Delli-Santi, a spokesperson with the labor department. "They should go online and check their claim status every day or two. If their claim status is 'filed' and there is an amount other than $0 as the weekly benefit rate, they are ready to start claiming benefits."

"We have added phone lines and staff, but the phones remain jammed," she said. "Our website is a more efficient option for claimants who have encountered an issue or have an unanswered question."

Delli-Santi said a lot of the issues workers face trying to claim benefits can be solved without talking to an agent. Among those common issues:

• Workers submit the application with missing information or with misinformation, an inverted Social Security number, incorrect work dates, etc., and it gets flagged for an agent to review.
  • Solution: Treat the application like you would an exam, and review your answers before submitting. "PLEASE read the guidance on our website — nj.gov/labor —BEFORE applying. They were written to be helpful." Completed claims with no complications are being processed in 3 weeks, same as before the pandemic. Those with errors or missing information are taking longer to process.
• Workers voluntarily quit, then apply for benefits. They are not eligible for benefits.
• Self-employed, freelancers and independent contractors have applied for unemployment and been denied.
  • Solution: Sit tight. These workers are not eligible for state benefits, but they likely are eligible for federal Pandemic Unemployment Assistance. A necessary first step is to be denied regular unemployment. This program is not up and running yet, but will be soon. The Labor Department will contact these workers once more information is available.
• Workers are having trouble certifying or claiming benefits.
  • Solution: Workers must be available and actively seeking work to continue to receive unemployment benefits. Thus, if they answer the certifying questions incorrectly, they will be denied benefits. Read the questions carefully, and consult our website (where there is a cheat-sheet, of sorts) to be guided through the certification process.
• Workers need to reset their pin.
  • Solution: we have automated this function, so they no longer need to speak with an agent.

If you're still having trouble, Delli-Santi said, use the new automated email system and the department will reply with resources for their particular area of concern. That automated system is at this link.

"If they submit a request, an agent will get back to them, but it will not be immediate," she said. "We cannot get to everyone's claim at once. But, we get it — that's of little consequence if your claim is one we haven't gotten to yet. We are backdating claims, so everyone will get every penny they deserve. But, it may not be as fast as they — or we — would like it to be. That's why we are working hard to get money into the hands of everyone who deserves it, as quickly as possible."

"Our top priority has always been to get benefits into the wallets of everyone who deserves them as quickly as possible," Labor Commissioner Robert Asaro-Angelo said.

Guides were released for independent contractors, freelancers, and self-employed people to explain the benefits and walk them through the application process. Those guides are on the website.

"The governor said 'We replied to half the claims.' What about the rest of us?" said Crystal Nagle, who has been trying to get through to a human being for weeks. Nagle is caught in a double nightmare of red tape. A Pennsylvania resident, she worked in New Jersey for part of 2019. Since June 2019, she had worked in Pennsylvania.

Pennsylvania told her to apply in New Jersey, because the unemployment claim process was using a base year that included the New Jersey employment. She received a confirmation from New Jersey, but every attempt to call to certify for benefits has left her with dead air.

She tried to apply for the Pandemic Unemployment in Pennsylvania, which is not processing her claim because the system says she's eligible for unemployment. "I’m living this nightmare," she said.

Flick, who said she isn't eligible for the stimulus because she had pulled money from her 401k to pay bills in 2019 and exceeded the income limit, expressed a similar sentiment.

"2018 was a horror show, 2019 was bad and now we're dealing with this," she said. "I've just been getting steamrolled."

"I've done everything I can at the moment," Flick said. "I wish there was more of a spotlight on this."

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