KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Unemployment claims continue to roll in to the Missouri Department of Labor.
41 Action News has heard from people trying to file a claim that the website and call centers are struggling to keep up.
State leaders said they are working hard to improve the current system.
As of March 28, 104,230 Missourians filed for unemployment. That's up from 42,207 the previous week, and up from nearly 4,000 the week before.
This means applicants are finding it nearly impossible to reach someone from the department on the phone.
"I got through twice and it hung up on me after a 45 minute and and an hour wait," Paul Passig said.
Passig works in the restaurant industry and is now out of a job. He wants to be sure his claim was received after working through some issues.
The first time he applied, he received a letter saying the state needed to verify his identity. He thought he had everything verified but instead received a second letter in the mail.
"I started frantically calling everybody, any number I could find," said Passig. "I was calling the capital, the Department of Labor, the U.S. Department of Labor just trying to get an answer."
He said he couldn't get a hold of anyone to make sure his claim was received.
"The entire process has been literally scrambling trying to find numbers and just being so grateful you're almost in tears when you find someone to actually talk to you," Passig said.
The Missouri Department of Labor is hiring more people to work in its call centers, expanding its online servers and adding phone connections to keep up with the increased demand.
The department says it's getting even more calls since the CARES Act passed, which expanded unemployment benefits to more people.
"We were forced to close and then we kind of shifted online, pushing as much as we can," said Emily Bordner, who owns EB and Co. in Brookside.
The CARES Act means business owners, freelancers, the self-employed, and people like Bordner can apply.
She said she didn't have trouble applying online.
"It was kind of weird being like, 'applying for myself, managed by myself.' But yeah, the process was pretty easy. I haven’t heard anything, it’s been about three days I think," Bordner said.
Another common complaint is that the unemployment website still hasn't been updated to reflect the changes the CARES Act brought about. The state said there will be more options online once they receive federal guidance.
The state still urged those who need to file for unemployment to file online. About 90 percent of initial claims are now filed online, according to the state.
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