As states begin to reopen after the coronavirus-induced lockdowns, out-of-work Americans have made beelines for their labor departments, many of which have struggled to process a surge in unemployment claims that has overwhelmed systems.
Kentucky has been hit particularly hard by coronavirus-related job losses. Since mid-March, 45 percent of the state's workforce — 927,000 workers — has filed for unemployment benefits for the first time,. As of Monday, over 7,500 unemployment claims filed in March had still not been processed.
Kentucky has not been the only state to see long lines for unemployment claims. Last week, hundreds of people lined up on the campus of Alabama State University in Montgomery to file unemployment claims in person,. Some even waited overnight to ensure that they would be among the first in the line. The Alabama Labor Department continues to recommend that people use its website or hotline, but some residents said they struggled to get assistance.
"I haven't been able to get through on the phone lines, because even if you wait until they open the phone lines, which is at 8 a.m., you can't get in — it already says, oh, we've got too many, you know, too many calls," Angelica Hugely, an Alabama resident,
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