Ohio unemployment worker cut off relative’s benefits after fight
An Ohio Department of Job and Family Services employee cut off her relative’s unemployment benefits following a fight, according to an Ohio Inspector General’s report.
ODJFS customer service representative Quenise Barnes improperly accessed a relative’s pandemic unemployment assistance 10 times in May and eventually cut off that person’s benefits.
“in case your wondering it was me that turned your pua off,” Barnes texted with several laughing emojis and ones with hearts.
On June 9, the relative filed a complaint with the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services’ chief inspector general’s office. The relative had been receiving federally approved unemployment benefits since spring 2020.
The relative reported that a fight had occurred with Barnes on May 7 and she subsequently turned off the person’s benefits, citing “fraud.”
In an interview with investigators, Barnes said she didn’t intentionally cut off the benefits, claiming that her supervisor was the one who halted benefits instead. But computer records indicate Barnes was the one who stopped the assistance.
“I was clicking things to get around, but I never actually said, ‘Oh, let me lock this’ because I don’t know what I’m doing in PUA, I don’t know if [they] still would’ve got payments even if I did lock it or not,” she said in the interview.
Barnes had previously posted on social media that she had the power to adjust her relatives’ and friends’ benefits because of her new job at the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services.
In addition to messing with her relative’s claim, Barnes had also accessed her own unemployment claim four times – against the department’s policy. Barnes was fired in early July.
The Ohio Inspector General forwarded its finding to the Franklin County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office, Columbus City Attorney’s Office and the Ohio Ethics Commission.
The Inspector General also recommended that ODJFS review policies that prevent employees from working on their relatives’ claims and their own claims.
Jessie Balmert is a reporter for the USA TODAY Network Ohio Bureau, which serves the Akron Beacon Journal, Cincinnati Enquirer, Columbus Dispatch and 18 other affiliated news organizations across Ohio.