RALLYING TOGETHER
OKC Central: When the going gets tough, the community gets going
Along time government attorney has been hired to oversee staff at the Oklahoma Employment Security Commission.
Claudia Conner joined the state's unemployment agency Monday as chief of staff, a newly created position. She has more than 15 years of state government and legal experience, and most recently served as Bethany's city attorney.
She previously was deputy director, general counsel at the Oklahoma Department of Tourism and Recreation, and served as general counsel for the Oklahoma Department
of Commerce. Conner spent seven years as assistant attorney general, and was chief legal counsel for the agency.
State officials want to modernize the agency, a goal that began before the corona virus pandemic triggered an economic crisis and waves of unemployment filings. Agency leadership were forced into a difficult position with understaffed offices and an outdated computer system, but Interim Executive Director Shelley Zumwalt said they are catching up.
Plagued by a massive queue of people needing help filing an unemployment claim, OESC held several in-person events in Oklahoma City, Tulsa and Ardmore over the past few weeks. Those events have now concluded.
“At this point, we aren't planning additional claims events, but I am constantly taking the temperature of the situation,” Zumwalt said. “If another effort is needed to serve our claimants, I will take action to make that happen.”
OESC agents saw nearly 10,000 people at all three locations, which helped push total claims payments since March 1 to $2.6 billion.
“That's thousands of people who not only have their benefits but also are not having to spend hours on the phone,” said Zumwalt. “While these claims events have taken place, we've lowered our call volume, hired and are training new staff, which will double the number of staff in the OESC Oklahoma City and Tulsa call centers, and continued processing claims at a high level.”
Visit Oklahomaworks.gov for a list of the 27 regional office locations across Oklahoma where OESC staff can help with a claim. Claimants may call any of the regional offices to receive help, however, regardless of where they live.
Staff at regional offices are able to assist with topics including Pandemic Unemployment Assistance, fraudulent claims, technological help, unemployment insurance and initial claims filing. The centers also have information about local work opportunities and how to access needed services available where claimants live.