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Masses of Unemployed Overwhelm State Claims Systems
By
Jen Chung
Published Jan 6, 2009
Modified Jan 6, 2009
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By
Jen Chung
Published Jan 6, 2009
Modified Jan 6, 2009
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A sign of just how many New Yorkers are unemployed: According to the AP, the state's "unemployment claims systems have crashed, overwhelmed by tens of thousands of jobless New Yorkers trying to call or log in at once ahead of this week's filing deadline." Apparently around 10,000 people an hour were trying to log into the system yesterday, first causing the phone banks to shut down and then the problem hit the online filing system. The state's unemployment rate is 6.1%, up from 1.5% from last year—and the state predicts it could rise to 7%. The state said everything was working again this afternoon.
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new york
Unemployment
unemployment claims
Jen Chung
Jen Chung is a former WNYC and Gothamist editor.
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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