Joe,
I wasn’t going to even waste my time refuting the most recent “attack” against us unemployment workers, but I’ve had enough. In Sunday’s Daily Times, there was another article about the “terrible unemployment office.” I am sick and tired of so many uniformed people dogging our agency. Let me set the record straight as The Daily Times tells a one-sided story, like usual. Now I can only speak for the Salisbury claim center, as I don’t work in any of the other claim centers across the state.
Yes, we are thankful that we have jobs. Yes, we are extremely overloaded with our workload and hard to get in touch with. (As most state agencies are) However, if you go to our website, www.mdunemployment.com, it is extremely user friendly and you can get almost any information that you need right on the website. If people would only take the time to READ it.
I’ll have you know that we are one of the few state agencies that WORKED mandatory overtime throughout the holidays just to try to get through the high caseload. So, while people were spending time with their families on Christmas Eve and during the holiday season, we, at the Unemployment Office were working. Getting cursed out 8-10 hours a day because it’s all our fault that businesses are closing and people are losing their jobs. It’s our fault that their homes are being foreclosed and they can’t find a job after getting 73 weeks of unemployment. Yes that’s right, 73 weeks of Unemployment. We, as employees have not had a raise in 3 years and in fact, we have had to undergo furloughs and salary reductions. At the same time, unemployed claimants just got a “raise” of $30 extra dollars for every week they are unemployed. HMMM…..
Unemployment is not a “God Given Right.” It does NOT come from an employee’s paycheck. Unemployment was set up to help people who are out of work through no fault of their own. Unemployment Insurance is paid for by the EMPLOYERS, and it is our job to follow the state and federal guidelines. We are NOT in business to give people a hard time. We are just trying to do our job the best way we know how in today’s tough times. So, the next time you think about bashing the Unemployment workers, please, put the shoe on the other foot and gather your facts first. Walk a mile in our shoes and I guarantee that you won’t want to put them on again.
DelMarVa's Premier Source for News, Opinion, Analysis, and Human Interest Contact Publisher Joe Albero at alberobutzo@wmconnect.com or 410-430-5349
36 comments:
I'm in my mid 30's and have worked since I was 14 years old. When I lost my job last March I was devistated and the thought of drawing unemployment was even worse. Looking back, I am GRATEFUL for the assistance! The unemployment website was user friendly and if I had to call for help, they were-for the most part very nice.
You sit in a conditioned building all day long, you have a salary, paid vacations,medical insurance and a pention at one point down the road. Do your damn job and shut-up.
Well sorry you have a job..maybe you should try and put the shoe on the other foot and see how people are treated when they come to your office..
To the person who wrote this letter.
I understand that you may be working overtime to process the applications and requests.
BUT! You are in the field of customer service and I have to say that most of you are very BAD at your job!
I have not often run into such a rude and inconsiderate office as yours! You people have zero compassion and in the field you're in, that's what it takes!
You are dealing with the public and that alone is not always easy but if you can't handle it, then try finding another job, please!
We feel that some of your people look down their noses at the unemployed as though we're not working because we don't want to!
Maybe you're envious and you just are wishing you could stay home and claim an unemployment check too?
Whatever the reason, try being nicer to the public and maybe you won't be so ridiculed!
By the way, I still have my job, so luckily I can still afford my internet!
I went to your site and it not friendly.before you even start cliuck on file a claim then these outside agencys pop-up asking ur personaL history,debt owing etc and they r not part of the system.I clicked out.Never got to any part of filing a claim with your agency because i wasnt sure if my information was secure. So I havent filed.Tried many times over the phone no contact.
Get over yourself and have some compassion!
A perfect example of worker class, or worker sector warfare. You don't see ppl in the govt sector getting laid off. Sure this person said they received pay cuts, but overall the govt sector is growing while the private sector is shrinking. Maybe this person is unaware, but all these unemployed workers he or she is bashing, paid their salary with tax dollars. Maybe when this person goes out and works in the "real world", where there isn't an unlimited amount of money created from a printing press to back you up in case you fail, and gets out there and actually PRODUCES something, then maybe I can take letters like these more seriously
Okay, I have read the comments and want to put in my two cents. Before anyone starts, I don't work for Unemployment, but I am going to defend part of what is said here. I know someone who works for the Department of Human Resources (which Unemployment is part of). This person had a career in "the real world" for almost 30 years before they lost their job due to downsizing. It hurt this person's pride to have to ask for unemployment, but they did it until they got a job. The person now works for the state. My friend is furloughed for 8 days a year (I think it is that many), had a pay cut, and has had no COLA since God knows when.
My dealings with unemployment have always been positive, and I really understand where they are coming from. I wish people would quit bashing them for the fact that a few don't give a rats you-know-what about anything. You can't judge the basket by a few bad apples.
Finally, the only thing that upsets me about this poat is the person seems to be doing this on "company time". They complain about having so much to do, yet they are spending time on Joe's blog instead of processing applications. This gives me pause and makes me think that maybe this person might be part of the problem in the perception of Unemployment as uncaring and not customer friendly. Just something to think about.
Try losing your job through no fault of your own and being DENIED for unemployment benefits. They will look for any reason not to pay out. I am not making this up. I cannot go into details for obvious reasons. I am far from the only one who this has happened to. There is something wrong when others get paid for 73 weeks. The system DOES NOT work. Period.
10:10, how do you know when the employee sent the email? Just because Joe posted it at 9:00 AM doesn't mean she sent it then.
I like when you receive a letter in the mail stating you have to call to dispute a letter, but don't have enough operators to answer the call.
Lady, like alot of people who worked for themselves or their own company many people cannot collect unemployment. As I sit here and write out resumes my thoughts are a million an ounce just dancing through my head. It wont be long before my home is gone, my life as I knew it is gone and I cant get through a resume because my tears keep messing up the paper. What the heck do you know about PAIN.
I honestly doubt someone would "take their work home" with them and write something like this off the clock. It seems to be somewhat of a knee jerk reaction.
I post this comment after much thought. On the one hand, I'm embarrassed and ashamed to be on unemployment. Until I lost my job, I probably had the attitude in the back of my mind that "good workers are not let go." Well, a company can only take a loss for so long, and when 95% of your customers go out of business themselves, your company is just simply shut down. "Good", "bad", "smart", "team player", "employee of the year"... it doesn't matter, everyone goes on the street.
You go to file unemployment in your home state - Delaware. You sit for six hours in an office watching, listening, amazed at times, saddened at times, but always embarrassed the entire time. Your number finally comes up, six hours later. You're told you cannot file in your home state - all of your wages over the last x years were earned in MD. You're given a number to call.
After a wait of about 15 minutes you speak with someone who is professional - not overly friendly per se, but professional, to the point and informed. You're told you can file your claim on the telephone, that additional information is available on the website and call back if you need additional information.
The 'MD unemployment rulebook' - the MD Unemployment handbook is on their website - you download it , read through it and have a few questions. You look on the website and find the answers. You file your bi-weekly claims on the website and have the ability to see if/when your unemployment insurance claim has been paid. It works like it's supposed to - has never hiccuped nor been unavailable. And I'm even more ashamed to say I've used it now for 6 months.
Bottom line - this is a bad time. For those of us unemployed, we start wondering what's wrong with ourselves. Are we too old? Do we have a "stigma" associated with our name? Resume after resume, application after application, and zero replies back.
You start your day looking at between 40 to 50 websites searching for new jobs. In the back of your mind you're thinking "I don't even have a way of saving for replacing my wife's aging car, much less saving for retirement. I need a job, now!" You don't even think about trying to buy anything on credit - YOU'RE UNEMPLOYED SILLY BOY, UNEMPLOYED PEOPLE ARE LOSERS BECAUSE THEY DON"T HAVE A JOB.
Now you can see why those who are unemployed may be discouraged, depressed, distressed, and probably disagreeable at times. By the same token, I wonder how I would take being pounded on by people like this for 8 to 10 hours per day in my job.
I for one am thankful for the help, assistance, and professionalism shown by the MD Unemployment office.
Yes, I would take a job in their office - but I'll take any job. I also know it would be hard to manage that abuse every day.
Two sides to a coin....
I have friends who work for the Unemployment Office. Some of whom have been on Unemployment themselves. After speaking to them, I found that when a person calls to file a claim or to get information, they are not necessarily speaking to someone in the Salisbury Office. Did you know that there are offices all over the state of Maryland and a person's call could be routed to as far as Cumberland, MD. In addition, my friend, who is well-known around Salisbury shared with me that there are employees in the office that have stayed late to process claims and to get people paid and not necessarily received overtime in which to do so. I think that says a lot for the people in the office. Yes, you may have had some bad experiences but I think that someone said that "most of the people" in the office were rude. I am going to have to disagree. I've been on unemployment and have had to deal with the Salisbury Office and my experience was positive.
Is it the Salisbury Claim Center's fault that the phone lines are busy? No. They are trying to help the issues by working the overtime, calling ahead to cancel/resolve issues and even handling issues while not a work. Yes. That really happens. So be patient with them and I am sure that they will be patient with you.
In closing, have you ever thought that maybe you receive the negative response because you give a negative response. Why would you call the claim center and ask for assistance but then when asked to give your social security number, you tell the claimstaker that it is none of his/her business? That was just one instance that I was privy to but does that make all unemployed individuals, bad claimants? No. Have a good day.
Actually, unemployment insurance is paid for by CONSUMERS. All costs of doing business are accounted for in the final price.
As an employer who has had to let people go for, heaven forbid, not showing up to work, i have found the unemployment office hard to deal with. I am all for using the systen for those who really need unemployment. But to give unemployment to someone who regularly cannot make it to work, who decides to just not show up is really beside me. Unemployment just denied them a few weeks of pay and then picked up after that.. Crazy! I told the rep that too. They are enabling those who truly don't care if they have a job and want to work the system.
To 9:34 turn on you pop-up blocker.
I just lost my job after 15 years with the same company. I called unemployment about something I could not find on the website, she was very kind and helpful. She was able to refer me to other websites for answers she could not give me.
I have had a few unpleasant experiences dealing with the employees at the Unemployment Office. However, they were all at the Baltimore office, not Salisbury. My husband recently had to file for unemployment. He used the website to do this but the first day he tried entering his information there was a problem with the website. He sent an email, using the link provided, to let them know he was having problems and he received an email back from them within an hour telling him the website would be back in working order by the following morning. The following morning, which was a Sunday, the website was in working order again... and it was only 8am. I know this is only one small story of a positive outcome dealing with Unemployment, but I have also sat in the office and witnessed people that are there to file for benefits giving the workers much grief and it was usually due to the rules and procedures set forth, not because the workers were unpleasant.
OK you had your say,now heres mine.
My husband was fired along with 3 other people just a week after receiving a bonus for being an "excellent employee".When he and his coworkers filed for unemployment,they were told by YOUR agency that they were DENIED benefits based on what the employer reported.When my husband finally reached one of YOU PEOPLE,he requested an in-person appointment with YOUR office and his former employer.YOUR office chose to take the word of one supervisor at the company over the word of FOUR employees who were assured they would have no problem getting unemployment when they were canned 4 weeks before Christmas.It was easier for YOUR office to deny them,after all you have to keep the chronically unemployed in booze and cigarettes.YES,I know there are people who abuse it,I wait on them everyday at my job.These are people who havent worked in YEARS and have no desire to work,but when it comes time to buy a case of beer and some cigarettes,they whip out that handy dandy unemployment "debit card" with the crab on it.Apparently YOU are rewarding them well because they always seem to have money for things us working people do not.
Luckily,my husband found a job right away,his coworkers werent so lucky.One of them might lose her house,unemployment benefits would have helped her alot.Even though they were given bonuses for being good employees in October,they were sh*tcanned in November and then lied on.YOUR agency was dumb enough to believe that a company would actually give bonuses to employees they claimed "slept on the job,were insubordinate,etc," because someone would have actually had to get off their butt and do some real work to help these poor people get the benefits they were denied.Do you work for the employer or the workers?
Furthermore,how is it that people who cuss their bosses out and walk out of the job can get unemployment right away without hitch?Or someone who cant keep their job because they are drunk everyday and doesnt do the required job searches BECAUSE they are a damn drunk is in their 3rd year of collecting from you?But my husband had to wait SIX frigging weeks for YOU guys to say no because his employer lied and you believe them.Until you can explain any of this,just shut up!Sorry Joe but I am tired of state employees who dont do dick whine about their jobs.They are as bad as the people who dont work that we support.
For years all we have heard about is people getting benefits and cheating the system. So now they are so trained to look for cheats everyone gets treated like crap. How many times have we heard cut our taxs, cut government benefits.
11:49 Says who? How can you even make this statement? cj
Well said 10:57
cj
Anyone that owns a business bases their costs of their product on how much it takes to run the company. Unemployment insurance has to be factored into part of their expenses. So when you buy a product you are in a sense paying for their unemployment. It's still the employer that pays for it. No money is taken out of the employees paycheck like they do with state and fed taxes. I think that is what the other commenter was trying to say.
Blutojthetotmom, something similar happened to a friend of mine. The unemployment office chose to believe the lies that were written in a letter by her former employer. She didn't stand a chance of getting benefits. I have heard companies letting people go sometimes do things like that so their unemployment taxes don't go up! (??) Anyway, she finally found a job and I believe is making half the money she used to, but is a much happier person. She has a much nicer boss now and doesn't dread going to work every day, that makes a huge difference. LOL
Seek to understand...if multiple people say your service sucks...there must be a reason, whether it is immediately apparent to you or not. I am sure that your office just like any other business or state agency, is not perfect and has room for improvement. Aknowledge that and make it so the complaints are in the minority. But....your job is to help people that are most likely upset to start with so there will always be some element of disgruntledness(sp?) that you can not avoid. If you sell manure your job is always shitty, but if you can get past that then you can enjoy your work and take satisfaction in trying to do it better today than you did yesterday. Focus on the task at hand my friend...your plea will not change the cirsumstances.
An example of what an unemployment employee may have to go through.
My cousin, recently called me and said, I lost my job today. I was sorry for her because I knew how excited she was to get the job. I asked what happened? She said she worked next to a non-English speaking co-worker who kept trying to talk to her but she did not understand. The other worker went to the Supervisor and complained that my cousin was holding up the process and would not pick up to speed. I said, well, you could not understand so you may have a good chance of unemployment. I then asked, what did you do to to explain your situation to the Supervisor? She said, do you mean before or after I threw the chicken I was working at her?
I said, cuz, don't even try to file for unemployment.
Why does everyone assume that everyone owns a computer or even knows how to use one? Just because it is online doesn't make it accessible to everyone needing the services of state agencies.
If everyone with a computer used the website then that would free up all those lazy state employees to answer the damned phone.
9:47; Who do you think some of the people are going to the unemployment office? Yes, EX-State workers. The state has laid-off several people in this area. Now for the last part of your post, let's say all all goverment workers quit to go out in the "real world". Tell me what would you do if you needed help. Say you lost your job and can't find one. What would you do, you can't go to the Unemployment Office, Social Services, Health Department or any state building they are all out in the "real world" I guess you could just go out and rob someone. If you don't think working with the public is not being in the "real world" then you have not work with the public lately. With times like they are, most people are more "unfriendly" and are down right nasty at times to anyone who can't help them right away no matter the reason. map
The state needs to crack down on unemployment fraud. At a time like this the last thing we need is fraud and people working under the table.
Many not only get unemployment they get their rent and heat paid by Shore-Up and the Joseph House. Some need the cord cut.
The unemployment agency is pro-business. They will take the side of businesses before the side of the employee.
They don't care about right or wrong, just the almighty dollar. Screw em.
My unemployment insurance just went from .09 to 7.9 and I own a small business, the customer will foot the bill for that. I most likely will lose more work because of it, in a time when things are already slow. Yet I see the brown baggers at the corner drinking in the pouring rain that wont walk in the sunshine to get a job...I dont give a rats a$$
8:42; What are you pro-for? That free check, free food stamps and help with your heat. Do you care about right or wrong, or do you just want to run your mouth. Do you know JT? Either way with so many people without a job, maybe they are over loaded. Stop and think oh you can't sorry. map
I am self employed and have been for over 20 years. Why cant those of you who have been fired, layed off, etc etc start working for yourself? Why, because you are so used to getting paid holidays, health insurance, comp time....well, when you work for yourself, those days are gone and you will finally have to REALLY work for a living - just like I do and I am not eligble for unemployment! Get a life and get a job!
Well I know from an interview I heard at a business that unemployment pays more that most people are finding jobs that pay. A guy got hired, called back 2 hours later and said he couldn't accept the job. when they asked why, he said he made to much on unemployment. A lot of these people are not even following the guidelines of looking for a job and are working the system. The government needs to worry about auditing those already on it. It's ridiculous. Most people who follow the rules and don't work the system are told over and over again they are not eligible.
I have been unemployed since April. I have never received unemployment benefits before in my life. I have never received anything but courteous treatment from anyone in the unemployment office. The updates are provided to us very quickly, and I am very satisfied with the way everything has been handled. I can tell you, though, I wish I had a job!
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