Thursday, October 11, 2012
People who have a problem with unemployment benefits can’t get through to state call centers.
The state’s call center for unemployment compensation in downtown Allentown isn’t set up to help the jobless in person, but most days some will show up desperate for answers after getting a non-stop busy signal when they try calling. An employee of the call center remembered one woman who claimed she had pressed redial 137 times before she even got the automated answering service that tells you how long your wait will be for a human being. That wait was 2 hours and 40 minutes. “It’s bad, it really is bad,” the call center employee said. Allentown’s call center on Hamilton Street is one of seven in Pennsylvania. The state closed an eighth call center in Philadelphia in August and laid off 78 workers in response to a loss of federal funds. …
Friday, August 3, 2012
Lehigh Valley's unemployment rate increased slightly in June to 8.5 percent.
- GOVERNMENT
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Friday, August 3, 2012
The Lehigh Valley unemployment rate ticked up to 8.5 percent in June compared with 8.1 percent in May, according to labor statistics. The rate applies to Lehigh and Northampton counties, as well as Carbon County in Pennsylvania and Warren County in New Jersey. The region added 3,000 non-farm jobs but that gain was diluted by a rise in workers seeking jobs. Government employment declined from May to June because losses at the end of the school year overshadowed seasonal gains in county and municipal government jobs, according to a Lehigh Valley Live report. Last month, Lt. Gov. Jim Cawley visited the Lehigh Valley to tout Keystone Works, a new state initiative to help workers find a job more quickly. But there are some jobs to be found …
Friday, July 27, 2012
Pennsylvania's Lieutenant Governor touts program to help job seekers
- GOVERNMENT
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Friday, July 27, 2012
Lt. Gov. Jim Cawley visited the PA CareerLink Lehigh Valley location on Union Boulevard in Allentown this week and discussed Keystone Works, a new state initiative to help unemployed Pennsylvanians find jobs more quickly. Keystone Works will connect unemployment compensation, or UC, claimants with up to eight weeks of on-the-job training delivered by employers who have job openings they need to fill. While receiving training, claimants will continue collecting UC benefits instead of wages. The 2012-13 state budget includes $2.5 million to provide as much as $1,500 in financial incentives for each trainee the employer hires upon completion of the program. Cawley said the state expects to save a similar amount in unemployment compensation …
Lower Saucon Brother
4:23 pm on Thursday, October 11, 2012
been trying for 2 weeks. once for 3 hrs. straight. Am working most days so what do I do? wish I had Gov. Corbett's home number more ›