Agency out to cut wait on jobless claim calls

Callback system introduced to improve process

SPRINGFIELD — The agency charged with handling Illinois unemployment claims this week implemented a new callback system that’s aimed at eliminating with lengthy wait times or the need to call back multiple times to get through.

The Illinois Department of Employment Security, which has struggled to handle a crushing demand for unemployment benefits amid the coronavirus pandemic, on Thursday implemented a system that allows claimants to call to speak with an agent, then places them in a queue to receive a callback when one is available, rather than waiting on hold.

“In addition to doing everything we can to update and improve the process for filing claims, this is a much more equitable way of handling those calls and ensuring people get a call back,” agency spokeswoman Rebecca Cisco said. “The system before was, for lack of a better term, sort of like a lottery, and the queues fill up very quickly.”

Cisco said there was a day last week when 10 minutes after call-in hours began, there were roughly 2,000 in the telephone queue, waiting for their call to be answered.

Here’s how it works: When someone places a call to the state’s claimant services center, Illinois Job Link, benefit payment control line or the employer hotline, they are placed in a queue to receive a callback without losing their place in line. Call back hours for the claimant services center are 7:30 a.m. to 7 p.m., Monday through Friday, while the callback hours for Illinois Job Link, benefit payment control and the employer hotline are 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m., also on weekdays.

The caller identification number that will show up when the IDES call back comes through is 800-2445631. If the call isn’t answered, the agent will attempt to leave a voicemail, and then make a second call. If neither call is answered, the claimant or employer would need to start the process all over again, calling the agency back and being placed into another queue for a callback. Cisco suggested claimants could save the callback number to their phone, or at least be on the lookout for the number and be prepared to answer a series of identifying questions from the agent “to make sure the claimant is who they say they are.”

In April, when the state was in the clutch of the coronavirus pandemic and as newly jobless Illinoisans reported a litany of issues getting through to IDES, Gov. J.B. Pritzker announced computer system upgrades and a new 200person call center to help field calls from the growing number of claimants. Pritzker has repeatedly blamed outdated technology and agency underfunding that led to decreased staffing, for the issues.

In May, a glitch in a newly launched state system for processing unemployment claims for gig workers publicly exposed personal information.

Pritzker on Thursday announced a new director for the agency, Kristin Richards, who has served as chief of staff for the Illinois Senate president since 2016.