Newly Unemployed In Tri-State Exasperated As They Try To Get Benefits; 'I Have Probably Had 4 Or 5 Breakdowns'
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) - New unemployment numbers are out. Nearly 3.2 million more people filed for jobless benefits last week.
Add up all the claims, and there are more than 33 million people without a job.
The are staggering but expected with businesses all around us closed and no real answer for when everyone can get back to work.
But seven weeks in, many people are still struggling to even file their claims for unemployment benefits.
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The sound of music is what freelance musician Kevin Lynch is used to, but being out of work since March, the West Milford, New Jersey, resident is forced to listen to a phone recording when he tries to call about unemployment that says "we cannot take your call at this time."
"It's a daily grind. It has almost become its own full, part-time job because I spend every day checking the website," Lynch said.
"I just want to know where I stand, but you can't get in touch with anybody," said Dan Cafiero of Massapequa.
Cafiero says he gets an error message when he logs into the website for the New York Department of Labor.
"At this point, it's kind of just a waiting game," Cafiero said.
He's sick of waiting, but not alone. Nearly 3.2 million people applied for unemployment benefits last week, bringing the national total to more than 33 million in the past seven weeks.
"I've probably had like maybe four or five breakdowns, just mentally, because this is a lot," said Autumn Campbell of Hackensack.
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She's taking care of her boyfriend who got COVID-19 and her two kids while trying to figure out why her claim went through but she's not seeing any money.
"I haven't received any type of verifications saying they need additional information, no nothing indicating there was a problem with my claim," Campbell said.
So far, $5.8 billion in unemployment benefits have been paid to 1.5 million New Yorkers. The Department of Labor says it added a new process online to allow backdated certifications to be paid faster.
In New Jersey, unemployment payouts are at $1.9 billion to about 700,000 people.
Commissioner Robert Asaro-Angelo of the New Jersey Department of Labor announced what's next.
"Tomorrow we'll be launching a new helpful chat bot developed in collaboration with colleagues at the office of innovation and Google that will answer the common questions we're seeing," he said. "We are in the process of contracting a new call center."
But for those still waiting?
"Disheartening," Lynch said.
Friday, the federal government will issue the April jobs report, with the unemployment rate expected to be the worst we've seen since the Great Depression.