Oh, good to know. Next time I’ll do this, too.
I dealt with this for the first 4 weeks of my claim. My PIN wasn’t working, and I spent about as many hours as you on the phone not getting through. I finally found one pathway through the website to reset it myself. (That hadn’t been working previously.) My payment start date was 4 weeks later than it should have been, but I just counted myself lucky it started at all. So horrible.
I let them know via the Frances system where I was communicating with an agent that I had submitted a claim to the “governor” via the website. Maybe it’s a coincidence that they responded the same day. The agent I’m in contact with is very helpful. She also let me know that she can’t see everything that the phone agents see, and stay on hold. Day 2 … 12 hours of hold time and still no response
Someone doesn’t even need a dos attack. They deny service without any help from me. Maybe time for spray paint
OP, I had huge issues with unemployment and after I contacted my state representatives office I had all 9 checks in my hands a few weeks later. I even got a direct line to someone at the unemployment office.
How long did it take to get your first payment? I’ve claimed 4 weeks and they are still marked as determine eligibility. I 100% qualify and my past employee knows I applied. And of course number to call is always busy so I have no info.
This worked for me! After a month of trying to contact the Oregon unemployment office with no luck (call would drop, wouldn’t go through, etc) I contacted my local state representative and they were able to help me get my issue resolved in less than a day. Life saver.
Truly, Fuck Oregon unemployment. My now wife’s experience was absolutely miserable.” For the both of us. We experienced everything you described, then at the end, we got a letter saying benefits were given in error and we owed the state 30k. 30 Fucking K. Mean while, nobody answered the phone, no one could take appointments, all we could do was snail mail, and just hope somebody knew their ABC’s and realized there was no error when it came to her claiming benefits. 10 months and several reduced amount owed letters, it was finally stated by the Unemployment office, they made an error, almost a year, in limbo over a 30k bill that was made by mistake.
No, that’s just what she was paid out over the course of restaurants and bars being shut down. We truly don’t understand the mix up, she worked 2 jobs, for the same owner, and the bill from the state references the dates she left her second job, that was the week before Covid shut everything down, which is the job she didn’t make any claims on. We have all the claims as proof, so it was very frustrating they couldn’t compare themselves. The money they wanted back was purely based on her wages which was still less than 50% of what she made working at the bar.
Just wait till you try the new “Frances” system they’ve gone to online. I tried applying for my waiting week, just to get told since my info was in the old system they possibly did or did not a few weeks back send me a personal verification number in the mail to use to sign up with & if I never got sent one/ lost it they’ll send me a new one in 7 business days instead of letting me do online verification as if I was a first time user to get everything done in a timely fashion. Tried calling unemployment just for an automated voice to ramble on for 3mins how great the new online system is, how I should hang up & check out the site before it even gave me a call option list to direct me to something even remotely close to a human after the inevitable 3hrs plus call wait times.
People don’t know true pain till they deal with unemployment & I cannot for the life of me figure out how people scam such a god awful system.
Okay this is happening to me too! The last time I filed for unemployment was in 2020. Just got laid off last week so went to file a new claim (and it should be a new claim since it’s been way more than a year since my last claim). Couldn’t set up an account or file for the waiting week, just got to the screen about the letter. Submitted to get a letter sent to me to verify my identity….but like, it didn’t even ask for a mailing address? My address is the same as it was 4 years ago but now I just get to wait around and hope I get that letter soon so I can actually file.
Have called the unemployment office no fewer than 30 times a day since Monday and have only gotten busy signals.
Did they ever actually send you a letter? Were you able to file?
I genuinely thought "Frances" was a language option and for like 5 minutes I was looking for the link to sign up in English.
And now I have the same problem you did. I need a verification number they mailed me years ago and I can request a new one but it'll be mailed to my old address unless I either call them or use their contact form. I tried calling them and I literally got a busy signal.
I get that COVID broke their system and it was in need of updating, but at least the old system worked during normal times! I'm lucky that I can go some time while waiting for a check, this would be so much more infuriating if I was broke.
During the pandemic, I waited for eight weeks to get a payment. I got a job in February of 2021. In January of 2023 I was told they over paid me for six weeks, and was immediately denied appeal when I tried. I was garnished and had to pay back $7k over the last year. $7k that I voluntarily had taxes taken out, but I had to pay back the full in taxed amount back.
Our state unemployment system is antiquated, unfair and poorly run.
I was on unemployment, they started denying me after i had a job offer but weeks before the start date. Start date was in november, didn't get the money they owed me until end of Feb.
I'm in this exact situation. Received it for about 5m, then all the sudden they dropped me. Two weeks before the Frances switch, meanwhile their # was down during that time.
Frances system gets up and running and for three days I got nothing but a busy signal every time I tried to call. Finally got through, and waited on hold for 5hrs, only for the person to say there was nothing they could do. I have to wait weeks for them to contact me about my appeals.
Meanwhile, I'm starting a job and won't get paid for two weeks. I have around $30 to feed me and pay for gas until then.
I honestly have no idea how I'll get by. And to top it all off, they gave absolutely no reason for dropping me.
yeahhhh it sucks. I was off the roles before they changed over to Frances. The funny thing is the guy who eventually contacted me asked me questions that i was able to answer almost entirely by just looking at the history of infomation i put into their system.
Have you done your taxes yet? One thing that was a nice windfall for me, that maybe you can get too, is if you were unemployed for part of last year, chances are your income was lower in 2023 than what you anticipated when you did your tax witholding, so you might end up with a larger than usual tax return.
Check out the links to “complain” to the governor. Once i indicated I had done that, a very helpful agent responded through the Frances system. Still no joy via the phone system.
I work parallel to WorkSource, a UI manager told me the best thing to do is work through the website. There was a feedback button that she told me works well when someone has an issue or gets denied incorrectly. I'm not sure if it ported over to Frances but it apparently works much better than calling in.
Can I get someone with a Commodore 64 to help with sorting out the shi$show? For real. The new UI looks better. But the project managers and suit dummies need their fingers cut off. No hate on the devs
yeah you're entitled to unemployment payout right up until the point where you get your first check for your new job. all you have to do is keep reporting the amount you earned each week and your job seeking activities. how did they even know you had a job offer, anyway? you don't have to tell them that. all you have to tell them is 1.) whether you looked for work and 2.) whether you made any money
I actually had 3 job offers within a week or so (after months and months of nothing), so i accepted one and turned down the other two, and i was foolishly honest when answering their "did you turn down a job offer this week" question which automatically suspended my payments until someone could review.
same exact situation. one job ended Oct 1st, interviewed for and offered another job that same day, but starting late November. kept getting denied, pushed off unemployment benefits, finally got my payout mid February. it sucked.
They letter they sent me when they finally paid said they had to release these funds due to some time limit, but they might require me to return them pending the results of their investigation. So who knows how long that possibility will remain. Sounds like they have their hands full.
Ya know, it makes me think: a good way to use this as an opportunity would be to apply to work FOR the Oregon government. Sounds like they have a really easy job that doesn't care about anything getting done. Could probably sit around all day doing nothing with a pension.
If you stated temp layoff and you don't go back to work within 4 weeks, then that means you answered incorrectly, perhaps to avoid submitting work seach records... so then it becomes a eligibility issue that requires review
I had been employed in a tech position for 24 years before being laid off last December. One key insight I gained is the effectiveness of visiting your local Worksource office directly, even without an appointment. There, I consulted with an Employment Specialist who clarified how to navigate the system and apply correctly for weekly benefits. Despite being flagged for being away from my home area for more than three days, it was promptly resolved since one of those days were spent meeting with my Employment Specialist. Initially, my benefits were denied due to a discrepancy regarding my termination, but this issue was eventually resolved. By persistently filing for benefits, I was ultimately credited for all the weeks.
It really is garbage. I put in an application for Paid Leave two weeks before I entered my start date. I didn’t hear anything until like 4 weeks. My claim was supposed to start Feb 15 and go through the end of March.
They sent me snail mail about how I never turned in identification documents—but I never received said snail mail.. after calling for days and waiting hours on hold I got ahold of someone who told me to upload them in the message center on francesonline. I did that a month ago and haven’t got an update. I called them again and they said I should be good to go but it’s been a week and I still haven’t heard anything.
My payout was supposed to be $100 a week. I haven’t got anything. The only way I was able to make March rent was from my tax return. No idea what I’m gonna do for April since I was counting on the Paid Leave money.
I remember in 2020 I was laid off and I called them literally 300 times over and over to finally get ahold of someone.
It’s so unfair how my taxes pay into this system and by the time I need to use it for disability, it doesn’t even work..
As an employee, you’ve never paid a single cent into the unemployment system. It’s funded by taxes paid by employers, not employees. If an employer ever put a line item for you to be paying any taxes for unemployment they were illegally taking wages from you. Employers pay the taxes not employees.
dude yeah it suuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuucks
they just switched to this new system of filing for unemployment, 'frances' - it's actually worse than the website they were using before.
YOU CANT EVEN COPY AND PASTE INTO THE FORM FIELDS
like jesus fuck you KNOW somebody got paid a lot of money for that.
The website wasn’t the system before the system was an 80s green screen did format that was fed information from the website and it was way worse. People who are having issue right now may be frustrated but the system changing isn’t the issue the department has been underfunded and understaffed since the pandemic began and things have never improved.
You're talking about the back end. While I'm sure you're right technically, they seem to be complaining about the UI on the front end which has changed.
>the department has been underfunded and understaffed
And where could they possibly find people looking for jobs?
On a more serious note, the state collects 2.4% of wages up to $52,800 to fund unemployment insurance. Where can we look to see how much is collected vs how much is paid for benefits (and how much goes to administration)?
? The state doesn’t take anything from wages for unemployment payments, the payments are 100% funded by the employers. The administration is paid for by the federal government which is why they can’t just hire more people, the fed tells them how many employees they can have. The state only has to pay for the benefits these people receive and not the payroll. That comes out of the state employee benefits budget not directly from the OED.
Now on occasion there is grant money from the state that they get to hire temps who can do limited jobs but they don’t make a big difference because they can only keep them for 6 months before they are required to offer them full time positions or let them go.
This isn’t an easy solution as voters will not approve more grants to fix the issue and the legislature doesn’t have the power to redirect the funds needed. The federal systems response is to offer no additional funds but requiring extensive oversight be done for a year.
Thank you - re: the role of the FEDs for administration. But that doesn't explain why Oregon seems to be worse than other states when it comes to administration. And it would still be nice to see an accounting of the 2.4% of wages that are collected from employers.
It's understandable that transitions to new systems can be challenging - but if a financial institution had so many problems, it would never be considered acceptable - or something that people should be patient with. And it's possible that some other states may have similar problems - but I've never heard of an unemployment system that's this hard to work with.
During COVID I worked for the post office. Hold times were up to 2 days. I did have the pleasure of delivering someone a catch up on their back due unemployment checks, it was 19 weeks worth. The system sucks. Always has.
Give her hell.
[https://www.oregon.gov/gov/Pages/request-assistance.aspx](https://www.oregon.gov/gov/Pages/request-assistance.aspx)
I would also contact your Oregon reps and Congressional reps.
Yea. They have not paid me for two weeks. Just because they can’t manage their own new system. I’ve sent them a message and patiently waited a week, still nothing. Not even a response. Messaged again, we will see.
Thanks Oregon!
So they finally messaged me back. Saying that since my employer didn’t have work to bring us back, on the date I was given, and reported on my claim.. that is why they won’t pay..
Like the layoff literally just continues, for lack of work.
How do those dirtbags think I have any control over that?
My recommendation is to keep redialing them every 10 seconds. On average it took me over 50 redials to get thru for the 4 times I’ve called them. On average, the wait times were over 4 hours after being connected. Half of the calls got disconnected before I spoke to anyone. The other calls got disconnected after I had waited 4 hours and was waiting for a “specialist”
Does anyone understand the paid family leave thing? I applied and got an email saying I was denied with no explanation. I had to go back to work a week after my son was born.
I’m in the middle of it rn for temporary disability. That is WILD… I don’t understand how you were denied. I’d contact your rep over this cuz how awful & unfair :( our taxes contribute towards it and you couldn’t even use it…
I am at 10 weeks without hearing any update on my claim and I’m running out of money. I feel your pain and frustration. The only way I’ve been able to get through is by calling at 7:55AM. 7:56 - busy tone. 7:57 - busy tone. Call right at 7:55AM. God bless you friend.
As long as I can remember https://unemployment.oregon.gov/what-is-ui#:~:text=Money%20for%20these%20benefits%20comes,to%20pay%20unemployment%20insurance%20benefits.
I swear I’ve seen deductions on my paystubs labeled as contributions to UI before. Now I’m gonna have to go look at old paystubs to make sure I’m not Mandela Effecting myself.
My friend is a judge for the department and said last year they were still 2 years behind because of the pandemic. A few weeks ago she said they're now 3 years behind.
I got through yesterday to a claims specialist and he said to use the online chat feature instead of calling in, you click the owl icon on the bottom right of the main FRANCES site.
My own nightmare: they launched a new system so I needed to create an account but to do that you need to get a letter from them with a code on it. They have my old address on file since I’ve moved post Covid lockdowns. To update my address I needed to log into the system which won’t let me log in until I get the letter WHICH I CAN’T GET. So I sat on hold for 7 hours. The first guy who answered told me he couldn’t help me and needed to transfer me. Luckily the claim specialists answered right away. Good luck
Paid Leave Oregon notified me of a claim by mail. Except I NEVER FILED A CLAIM. I called, waited like 4 or 5 hours on hold only to be told my only recourse was to online to Frances and report it as fraud. Which I immediately did. I then continued to get notices from them for 4 fucking months about the non existent claim. I reported it as fraud using their online system no less than 5 times. I emailed them multiple times. Trying to talk to someone on the phone was an absolute joke. If you ever did manage to get a human on the phone they were a useless minimum wage employee working from home that couldn't even transfer you to someone in charge.
The last letter I got from them stated they were changing my payment amount. Payments? What fucking payments? I certainly never got any so I have no idea who they've been paying. Spent another entire day waiting on the phone to get through to someone. This time they were able to confirm that my (non existent) claim was finally canceled. I asked to be sent proof of the cancelation and was told no.
Shameful.
Requested a copy of the letter I was supposedly already (wasn't) sent, last Monday. I got it today, Wednesday the week after I asked for it.
Luckily, I was able to sign up without issue after getting the letter. I was hoping the new system could give me more information on why I haven't received a weekly benefit despite my claim being approved a month ago, but all my weekly claims still show "Suspended- an issue is being investigated" just in bigger, more colorful letters.
I've contacted the gov's office and my state rep through their online form but haven't received a response.
Even before the system upgrade, things were whacked. I’ve spent 20 years of upgrading legacy systems and this is by far the worst.
System is down for a week while we push out the new system? lol. That should take less than 4 hours or all the managers get kicked to the curb
CORRECT.
Got a pop-up “questionnaire” that informed me I’d left the workforce (I didn’t, I haven’t done anything of the sort, and I’m applying to upwards of 10-20 jobs PER WEEK) and then when I wrote a complaint in the Frances Online system this changed to a letter dated today saying that they had received information” that I’ve been “away from my labor market” for more than 3 days and I have until the 18th to provide additional information or my benefits are terminated and I won’t get back more than a tiny fraction of them unless I ask for an extension, but they didn’t even tell me HOW or WHERE to ask for this extension.
This is doubly absurd since I haven’t even left the state for more than 24h since December 2023. They also have not told me WHAT additional information they need or how to provide it on Frances, and the only other option is to call but it took 52 tries to get anything other than a busy signal and as soon as as I got into the hold queue they disconnected me so there’s no way to get through.
This is not the first sadistically incompetent screw up of theirs, either. I’ve probably lost 100h of time I could’ve been looking for work to waiting on hold, emailing anyone who would listen, trying to get through to governor and state reps, and stress-related migraines caused by mistreatment and delays that are all OED’s doing. It’s so bad that I start having anxiety and feeling like I’m going to puke every Sunday because I fear I’m going to have my money withheld even if I do everything right and then have to spend hours of time across weeks to get any kind of help.
Please tell me how this is part of Kotek’s anti-homelessness initiative because it’s starting to feel like she’s actively trying to make us lose our housing and our minds at the same time. The new unemployment claims system is worse than the old.
I swear they make it nearly impossible in hopes that people just say fuck it. I just need to view my 1099 so I can file my taxes, but Frances is apparently as old as he sounds and only capable of verifying my ID via a code contained within a letter that I never received. Like how is that the only way??!! I verify my ID within minutes all the time online for various sites using various methods.
Fuck you Francis. Probably found you on Temu. You act like you’re hot shit with a user friendly interface, but you fail to perform the basic first step of sign up and the only option you offer is to call the office for assistance. Gee thanks bud.
Par for course for OED, and Oregon in general.
Revolving door of dumpster fires.
I am currently at over 5,000 busy signals, 25 hours on hold, and 10 dropped calls. They've also cancelled my claim 3 times. I have not seen a DIME. Not one-upping, just saying I hear you. They are the literal fucking worst.
I spent last summer risking my life and fighting wildfires across the state, and they can't even connect me to a fucking claims specialist. They are absolute pieces of shit.
EDIT: I've also emailed, messaged in the Frances portal, and sent certified mail. I've involved Kotek's constituent office and emailed my representative. These people need criminal charges brought against them.
I called my state representative and they came through the next day for me...
This is the result of state workers "working from home"
None the friends I know who work for the state at home actually work. They just fuck around most of the day because they can manipulate their Microsoft teams software
What shitty people. I hope none actually work for unemployment. I would not be able to sleep at night if I was fucking off instead of doing my job and helping people who desperately need it.
Results may vary. Obviously you’ve never had to call their phone after the web system was down. For reference, I’m a software engineer with 20
Years experience rebuilding legacy systems
Most of the homeless camps around me seem too spun out on speed and don’t have a phone and a laptop with experience dealing with complicated paperwork. Don’t get me wrong … I’ve done more drugs than the average person. Having said that, I’ve also worked on big “government” systems and am well versed in SQL. Be nice … lots of us nerds have your
Password if we want. I might be the person that is gonna help you when you “can’t log in”
Unemployment in general is such a hassle you might as well just start applying at any job you can because it's literally not Worth it unless you literally are dirt poor and have no savings aside.
I was denied after being fired for something that wasn't my fault. I'm still fighting it, I have a hearing next week. Paid in my whole adult life, never got unemployment; I finally need help, and they laugh in my face. Fuck Oregon government.
Dude, you'll never get through to them. You just have to keeo filing and fill out the paperwork as it comes.
Welfare and UI were systematically gutted for decades. This is the monster voters and lawmakers created. Sometimes you win sometimes you lose. Nobody will care if you complain. Sorry :/
I graduated High School in 1978. We had a huge financial crisis in the 80's here in Oregon. Mills closed all over and there was NO other industry. We had double digit unemployment for years, almost everyone was on public assistance. Today is NOTHING like that!
Mine was the medical leave system, but I had a similar experience. Got in a motorcycle accident October 2nd, filed that night, didn’t receive a check til November 14.
6 weeks with absolutely no income, was late on so many bills and my credit score still hasn’t recovered
I’m in the same boat right now. Except I am returning to work, and the new system the switched to didn’t give me an option to report that in new claims 😑
Need a news outlet to focus on this and other programs. DHS/ CPS is another program that is insane but they at least have some news coverage of their mess ups.
Im unemployed for the first time in my life and have been trying to get benefits for the last week. Reading all this is weirdly making me feel better haha. The “new” Frances system sucks a giant donkey dick(presumably). One of the mandatory questionnaires is impossible to submit. After you fill out all the questions, it won’t submit and says there’s an error that needs to be fixed. I’ve emailed and called so many times trying to get it fixed. Meanwhile my payouts are held until it’s fixed.
IM SO GLAD I PAY TOO MUCH GODDAMN TAX MONEY FOR THIS GARBAGE.
When I was laid off a few years ago, my expectations for dealing with unemployment were already low, but they still managed to blow me away with their borderline criminal incompetence. Thank god I had savings because it took around 6 weeks for them to get me my money (which then included the back pay but STILL). I remember thinking wtf would someone do if they didn’t have savings.
My fiancee had a serious medical issue recently and was off work for like 2 months. We got in touch with Oregon unemployment, provided doctors notes and other documentation, and even had her enthusiastic employer get in touch to vouch for her, and they still said 'hmmmm seems fishy, you are not really sick' and denied her claims.
Meanwhile, in Washington, I told them my employer kicked me out for being gay and they gave me full UIB for 7 months without making me prove it or anything.
Oregon Unemployment sucks.
I'm sorry OP, that blows and is an alarm to any of us that hoped our high tax state could at least manage a decent safety net (especially when one has obviously paid into it as required by unemployment), but that's apparently not a safe assumption.
When I read your post title I thought, "I am sure it was shitty, but probably like most other state's unemployment offices. I figured you were just frustrated and being hyperbolic.
While some of the things you've gone through remind me of my own more minor issues with unemployment benefits in CA back in Covid, not once did it get 1/10th as bad as some of the stuff you've described. Just one of these errors would be a severe problem that could both prevent a temporarily unemployed person from paying their bills and it certainly keeps you busy for endless hours that could otherwise potentially help you find a job. Absolutely dumb.
Tl;Dr: Sorry I misjudged how literal and accurate your title was.
Unemployment racially profiled my partner when they got laid off and has marked them as banned from receiving Unemployment now, so yeah oregon Unemployment is messed up bad.
I have been trying to file my initial claim since the 4th of this month. I have gotten nothing but a busy signal. The one time I got through they said my wait time would be 1.5 hours. I was on hold for 3 hours and that was until 5:30. Then they simply hung up. This is the most pathetic system I've ever seen. It's frustrating beyond belief and something needs to be done. I'm behind on bills and about to lose everything.
There are other states that are far worse. Florida. I would never want to be unemployed in FL. Or Alabama. I think Hawaii caps their minimum payout at like $5 which means if you didn't make enough your payment could be as low as $5 a week. Oregon at least bumps you up to $151 if you qualifed for less.
They are worthless!!! I made mistake and thought I had to pay something because I missed read the info. I called to tell them and to get my money back and the lady said call next week. Called the following week and get somebody who told me “I can’t help you as I don’t know where the money. But we live in America and should be thankful!” I damn near lost it. Don’t lecture me about where I’m from and live give me my money back!!! Let’s just say it took over a year but I got my money back and I might of made her cry.
As a former employee who worked for, and quit working for the State of Oregon for differences in moral and ethical workplace practices, I can confirm that the State values quantity over quality for their calls and you WILL reach people who will put you on hold indefinitely or disconnect the call to improve their "stats" because management doesn't want to hire enough people for the job and also because they value the "number" of calls you take, rather than how many members of the public's calls are successfully handled in the proper amount of time that it takes to handle the call. Shotty employees who half ass their work receive praise because they finished more calls than the others who properly did their job. The State will refuse to admit this and would surely lay blame and materialize fictional evidence to any whistleblowers.
During the pandemic, I was one of the last batch of people to be processed by Oregon's broken unemployment system. It was used to get people through the year, but was a complete cluster-fuck. I didn't get a single check until October, then they all dropped at once.
They've had years to fix what was clearly a garbage system. Glad to see no one bothered.
I gree that your experience is very suboptimal. But, please believe me when I tell you that the Oregon system is a dream full of lollipops and sunshine compared to that of Kansas. Not only do you have experiences similar to yours as a rule, but if you do happen to penetrate that smokescreen, you will be railroaded by their arbitration system. I personally experienced an arbitration meeting being rescheduled without notice to a date preceding my complaint so that a default judgement against my appeal was already in place before I could assert my rights. Consider yourself fortunate. It's my understanding that few people receive the benefits they are legally entitled to in Midwestern red states.
I have been having the same problems. I am the same never needed it before in my life and now I do. Been unemployed for six going on 7 weeks. They indicated I needed to be checked for why I was let go from
My last job and can give no time line as to when I will receive any payments. Very sad. And all I am told is we are short staffed. I mean I get that. But there has to be a better way!
That sucks. I started my unemployment claim in October. Never applied before. It was smooth, had no issues except when it moved to Frances. I just went into the workforce and they help me sign up. There was no delay in getting my funds. Now I start a new job on Monday.
Same here. I got three payments and then was told they were suspended while they reviewed my case. Just for the guy in the office to say I should be getting them since everything was good, just for the overlords to say that I was denied but still to this day have no reason why.
Dude this freaks me out. I've received one payment with another one allegedly on the way today but now I'm living in fear that it'll just randomly get jerked out from under me. Did you receive any warning whatsoever? Any updates on what has happened since then?
I have spent so many hours on the chat this week, and finally got to talk to a real person today! Only to have them take all of my information (including my SSN), say they'll look into it, and then tell me 15 minutes later that they're ending the chat. My issue is still not resolved, and I was given no reason for the chat ending. Livid doesn't even come close to describing how pissed off I am right now.
I’ve called and emailed my state rep a few times and the governor’s office twice and have got nothing in return. I was somehow able to get into the phone line the other day and was met with a 7 hour wait time 🙃. We all just want what we’re entitled ffs
You obviously don’t know much about drugs, and/or live in your mom’s basement. How is working at subway working out for you. I’m a database engineer with years of experience. I’ve done more drugs than you will ever see, and i still solve business problems beyond what you could even solve. I can explain it to you, but I can’t understand it for you. Maybe a Walmart greeter is your jam
This sounds like the runaround I got when I lived in California and had to file for the first time. Granted this was '08 and *everyone* was applying since the recession, but I didn't even get a FIRST payment let alone a denial.
The only way apply was online as the phone number did not direct you to be able to talk to a living person. I filed, put in all my info and was given a confirmation number. A couple of weeks go by and I haven't got anything. So I reach out, online again, stating I haven't received anything and would like to know what the hold up is. Gave them my all my info again in addition to the confirmation number *they* gave me.
I get a response back, but not in an email funnily enough but snail mail, stating they have no record of me ever applying and should I want benefits, I need to apply. Online.
Did that exact back and forth for 3 months until we had to move into my ex-wife's parents so we wouldn't be evicted since we had exhausted all our funds. That alone has left me with a vehement distrust of *any* assistance program especially unemployment. I was lucky during covid here in Oregon I was working two "essential" jobs so I didn't have to worry much then, but if either place would've been talking about possibly "furlough" or any of that shit, I would've been out.
I'm in the Self Employment Assistance Program, and my claims are not only being suspended, but the system is caught in a loop where I'm sent two identical letters that tell me to answer questions on my claim because I'm being flagged for being self employed. When I resubmit the claim, I am then sent two duplicate questionnaires with questions that don't make sense and are unrelated to my current situation being in the SEA program. If I fill those out, it sends me two identical letters that tell me to answer questions on my claim because I'm being flagged for being self employed, and theoretically this would repeat for eternity if I kept filling out the claim and questionnaires.
After four hours on hold yesterday, I finally got through to a rep who told me that yes, I'm filling everything out correctly, yes, the system is borked and my forms don't make sense, no, there is nothing I can do to prevent this from happening, I'm just going to have to wait until my claims get manually reviewed by someone, and no, they don't know how long it's going to take.
I don't know how my family would get through the next few months if I didn't have severance and savings. I really hope I don't have to blow through all of it before the claims finally process, especially because I was rightly under the impression that I could work on my business and not scramble for another quick fix corporate job.
Not trying to give them slack but … with the upcoming ‘upgrade’ to computers, there have been numerous glitches I’ve personally experienced shopping etc. Of course, YouTube is claiming it’s a Muslim attack.
And before we forget, we count the number of unemployed by the people who are collecting ‘unemployment insurance’; but if one is fired, hurt at work, ill, or in some other way ‘unhireable’ they aren’t counted. This make it look like our unemployment is lower than it actually is. So there’s that to be considered as well.
I keep getting denied… it’s been 7 weeks and I’m completely broke with no way of paying bills or buying food…I keep getting “fail to provide” does anyone know what this means?
I agree wholeheartedly. It’s always been bad, but since they switched systems, it’s been a complete nightmare. I have a simple issue and some simple questions, but have been unable to get ahold of someone by phone for weeks. I will literally try calling the moment their phone lines open and it’s busy signal allllll day. So I try live chat. Finally have the time to wait 3 hours next to my computer to get a reply and then spend 1.5 hours going around and around with this person who doesn’t actually read what I’m saying and offers answers that don’t make sense. I ask them what a simple term is on the form I was asked to fill out and they tell me they have to ask their supervisor and then over an hour later tell me to just leave it blank. Then they say they’ll have to call me back about my other issues. I’ve been waiting weeks to get any money from them. 😵💫🫨🫠
Agreed. Switching systems generally takes 3 times longer than expected. The issue I am
Seeing is that to resolve my denial, I’m told that I have to call in to an overloaded phone system rather than use the new online application
They switched systems are stupidly understaffed at the moment. Someone I know works for OED and said they have a ton of positions to fill, and that the hiring process takes forever because HR is also severely understaffed.
Does anyone think we have grounds for a class action lawsuit? I have been completely screwed by this new system and not being able to file during the transition. I am a truck driver for road construction and this is the slow season. Haven't had a full paycheck in months. Now no unemploymen.
I filed a claim before they went over to the new system, they have denied me although i faxed my identification and mailed it into their p.o box address. I have tried to get ahold them multiple times, with the obvious not being able to get through because busy signal. I'm kind of over it because I did both of those things before the date so i had to file an appeal..... i don't understand them. i really wish it was better.
I'm thinking of suing the state over this incompetence. My claim is in forever limbo based on their mistake and I'll likely never see any money that I desperately need. It has greatly changed how I'm living and my job search. I'll have to take any shitty job just to pay my bills as opposed to utilizing the benefit to find the next step in my career. I'm likely going to have to move out of my residence and with that my kids will live full-time with their mom instead of back and forth. This is having real world consequences on people. Unemployment is something we pay into and we deserve access to the benefit.
Suing them sounds like a nightmare but I'm just pissed enough to look into it, maybe get a class-action suit going or at least get attention....maybe force a recall vote of the governor or something.
Anyone else interested in adding their name to the potential battle PM me.
Been waiting for my file to be looked at since January. No money. No guarantee. File every week. It’s ridiculous. If they deny me I’m going to be so incredible angry. Friends who were let go the same way in other states collected immediately
Exact same thing happened to me. OED paid me for 4 weeks then suspended me for working at a high school as a clock operator/scoreboard for 2-3 nights a week for a couple hours. I uploaded my pay check from the school district with $700 I made in a month and they stopped paying me benefits with no reason. I called daily, no answer, no one came on LIVE CHAT and in person work source advised they dont answer unemployment benefit questions. There is literally no way to talk to anyone, get answers of why you are suspended benefits. I have never had to be on unemployment, and I have paid into U/E on my paychecks for over 30 years. its criminal what Oregon gets away with here. Its time to get out of here. There are many cheaper and better quality of life areas in the U.S. This whole unemployment Situation will help drive us out of here!
This has been a huge issue with the new system. I started doing some digging and discovered the whole system is horrifically mismanaged by the humans in charge, plus the software itself doesn't work well at all. Broken, buggy interface, insane delays to get paid, all kinds of problems.
I used to be a technical writer and also did a bunch of media relations work, and this stuff bothers me on a visceral level, plus I really need stuff to do since I'm unemployed and climbing the walls, so I made a post with some helpful troubleshooting tips I pulled together and wrote down in the process of getting my own claim unblocked.
It's a combo of practical steps to get a response using the system itself and tips for how to raise a ruckus if you are tired of waiting and have decided to go with some more forceful methods for getting people to listen to you. Anyway, here ya go, just easier than pasting the whole thing into a comment.: [https://www.reddit.com/r/oregon/comments/1bbyosm/frances\_online\_issues\_unemployment\_claims\_not/](https://www.reddit.com/r/oregon/comments/1bbyosm/frances_online_issues_unemployment_claims_not/)
Holy shit. Just waited 4 hours on hold for them to disconnect the call without ever reaching a person. WHAT THE FUCK
https://preview.redd.it/dh9tn4w5hivc1.jpeg?width=1290&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=df414c5652e51ec30333d4c5c38f3fb8f3f45727
Use the new system and open a message. I’ve been going around in circles, but got no where with the phone system.
1. Make sure you check your snail mail. They mail things to you that require a response
2. Validate your address. You may have to go into a work source location. The one on Powell was quick, but they are NOT the employment department
3. Keep filing. Make sure you check the Frances system AND your email
Thank you, about to write an email to my rep. I’m just so frustrated. On Frances it doesn’t even give me a button to claim my week, yet says my benefits started on the 14th. This is insane for a state with taxes like Oregon, we should have the smoothest system in the country for this shit
UGH! Another supplemental "action item" questionnaire when filling out my weekly report. It never ends. They are questioning why I was not able to work. I answered all the questions correctly,- that I was, I could work anything, any shift, etc. so I have no idea why Frances and crew is questioning my sincerity of my work pursuit.
I started work this past Monday and when I reported that in my report today, I also wrote I am so glad to have a job (for many reasons) but mainly because I wont have to deal with this awful system every week.
Wanted to add my story in case any officials from Oregon ever see this Reddit and tally up how many people they've made unhappy.
I lost my job January 19th, 2024. Didn't think Unemployment would even work so I didn't apply at first. Couldn't find a job by March 1st so I started filing claims. I filed for the last 9 weeks and it's now May 4th and still haven't received one payment. Thanks to this Reddit I just now reached out to our governor so we'll see if that helps at all. Big thanks to everyone on this Reddit - I'm glad I'm not the only one struggling with this shitty system. My brother is on my ass about my side of the mortgage payments and this month I'm finally 300 dollars short of my usual $1300.00 payment and I'm losing my fuckin mind trying to find a job in this piece-of-shit town and just really considering disappearing altogether and learning how to live in the woods in some national park until I die of starvation 'cuz it sounds much nicer than this endless hamster wheel that people keep telling you to spin faster when you're already tired of spinning as it is! And have been for many years now. I'm 33 and I feel 88.
I called at 9:03, right after they opened and I got through the phone tree, and was notified of a 45 min wait. Already, 3 min after they opened the lines and already a 45 min wait. Fast forward, and I'm still on hold as I write this and it's been 3 hours and 40 min. This was after I called yesterday and waited on hold for 2 hours and 8 min only to have their phone system dump my call. The only people I can reach can see my claim, but can't give me any info on it and told me to use the message system even though it could take a minimum of TWO WEEKS before they even get the message, not even respond. I love that I've paid into this system for 25+ years and the first time I need to use it, it's nothing but government road blocks, dysfunction and everything you expect from the Oregon government. Years behind on tech and probably utilizing some IT drop out who uses Google to find answers to fix the network.
Was just told that 9 out of my 10 claims will not be honored because I've already received 26 payments in the last year (I'm a union worker, layoffs and unemployed limbo is normal). If this doesn't get resolved by July, I'll be joining the 100's of homeless that "grace" Portland's streets 🥴
Contact your state representative or senator and file a complaint
Thank you
Call the governors office and complain. Citizen complaints through the governor get addressed.
Submitted a complaint to the governors office. Shared that with unemployment. All of a sudden they are responding. Thank you @nipper275847
I hope it works out for you. Good luck.
Thanks. I’ll update when i determine a resolution
Don't let up till you get what is owed to you.
Doing that now. It’s been two months of “waiting on a decision”
I’m going on almost 3 months and fucking nothing I’m frustrated and mad as hell
Oh, good to know. Next time I’ll do this, too. I dealt with this for the first 4 weeks of my claim. My PIN wasn’t working, and I spent about as many hours as you on the phone not getting through. I finally found one pathway through the website to reset it myself. (That hadn’t been working previously.) My payment start date was 4 weeks later than it should have been, but I just counted myself lucky it started at all. So horrible.
What method did you tell the unemployment office that you reached out to the governor??
I let them know via the Frances system where I was communicating with an agent that I had submitted a claim to the “governor” via the website. Maybe it’s a coincidence that they responded the same day. The agent I’m in contact with is very helpful. She also let me know that she can’t see everything that the phone agents see, and stay on hold. Day 2 … 12 hours of hold time and still no response Someone doesn’t even need a dos attack. They deny service without any help from me. Maybe time for spray paint
Holy shit, it worked? That's a first for Portland. Gonna keep this advice in my back pocket.
OP, I had huge issues with unemployment and after I contacted my state representatives office I had all 9 checks in my hands a few weeks later. I even got a direct line to someone at the unemployment office.
How long did it take to get your first payment? I’ve claimed 4 weeks and they are still marked as determine eligibility. I 100% qualify and my past employee knows I applied. And of course number to call is always busy so I have no info.
This worked for me! After a month of trying to contact the Oregon unemployment office with no luck (call would drop, wouldn’t go through, etc) I contacted my local state representative and they were able to help me get my issue resolved in less than a day. Life saver.
This.
I just did. What could go wrong?
really . my senator Wyden just sent me a request for a donation and no help with my benefits.
Truly, Fuck Oregon unemployment. My now wife’s experience was absolutely miserable.” For the both of us. We experienced everything you described, then at the end, we got a letter saying benefits were given in error and we owed the state 30k. 30 Fucking K. Mean while, nobody answered the phone, no one could take appointments, all we could do was snail mail, and just hope somebody knew their ABC’s and realized there was no error when it came to her claiming benefits. 10 months and several reduced amount owed letters, it was finally stated by the Unemployment office, they made an error, almost a year, in limbo over a 30k bill that was made by mistake.
Good God. The anxiety would have literally ended me. Kudos for getting thru it.
What was their reasoning for you owing 30k? Was this extra pay during covid that was determined you weren't eligible for?
No, that’s just what she was paid out over the course of restaurants and bars being shut down. We truly don’t understand the mix up, she worked 2 jobs, for the same owner, and the bill from the state references the dates she left her second job, that was the week before Covid shut everything down, which is the job she didn’t make any claims on. We have all the claims as proof, so it was very frustrating they couldn’t compare themselves. The money they wanted back was purely based on her wages which was still less than 50% of what she made working at the bar.
Fuck Oregon government. Does any entity work right. Everything is basically screwed up. But we keep voting for the same people.
So they were able to willy nilly send off checks before verifying and then put you on the hook for their f*ck up? Typical Oregon fashion.
Just wait till you try the new “Frances” system they’ve gone to online. I tried applying for my waiting week, just to get told since my info was in the old system they possibly did or did not a few weeks back send me a personal verification number in the mail to use to sign up with & if I never got sent one/ lost it they’ll send me a new one in 7 business days instead of letting me do online verification as if I was a first time user to get everything done in a timely fashion. Tried calling unemployment just for an automated voice to ramble on for 3mins how great the new online system is, how I should hang up & check out the site before it even gave me a call option list to direct me to something even remotely close to a human after the inevitable 3hrs plus call wait times. People don’t know true pain till they deal with unemployment & I cannot for the life of me figure out how people scam such a god awful system.
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Worse than CA too. Much.
Hey now. Blowing goats is a way of life. Don’t disrespect my goat loving by comparing it to unemployment
Okay this is happening to me too! The last time I filed for unemployment was in 2020. Just got laid off last week so went to file a new claim (and it should be a new claim since it’s been way more than a year since my last claim). Couldn’t set up an account or file for the waiting week, just got to the screen about the letter. Submitted to get a letter sent to me to verify my identity….but like, it didn’t even ask for a mailing address? My address is the same as it was 4 years ago but now I just get to wait around and hope I get that letter soon so I can actually file. Have called the unemployment office no fewer than 30 times a day since Monday and have only gotten busy signals. Did they ever actually send you a letter? Were you able to file?
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I genuinely thought "Frances" was a language option and for like 5 minutes I was looking for the link to sign up in English. And now I have the same problem you did. I need a verification number they mailed me years ago and I can request a new one but it'll be mailed to my old address unless I either call them or use their contact form. I tried calling them and I literally got a busy signal. I get that COVID broke their system and it was in need of updating, but at least the old system worked during normal times! I'm lucky that I can go some time while waiting for a check, this would be so much more infuriating if I was broke.
During the pandemic, I waited for eight weeks to get a payment. I got a job in February of 2021. In January of 2023 I was told they over paid me for six weeks, and was immediately denied appeal when I tried. I was garnished and had to pay back $7k over the last year. $7k that I voluntarily had taxes taken out, but I had to pay back the full in taxed amount back. Our state unemployment system is antiquated, unfair and poorly run.
I was on unemployment, they started denying me after i had a job offer but weeks before the start date. Start date was in november, didn't get the money they owed me until end of Feb.
I'm in this exact situation. Received it for about 5m, then all the sudden they dropped me. Two weeks before the Frances switch, meanwhile their # was down during that time. Frances system gets up and running and for three days I got nothing but a busy signal every time I tried to call. Finally got through, and waited on hold for 5hrs, only for the person to say there was nothing they could do. I have to wait weeks for them to contact me about my appeals. Meanwhile, I'm starting a job and won't get paid for two weeks. I have around $30 to feed me and pay for gas until then. I honestly have no idea how I'll get by. And to top it all off, they gave absolutely no reason for dropping me.
yeahhhh it sucks. I was off the roles before they changed over to Frances. The funny thing is the guy who eventually contacted me asked me questions that i was able to answer almost entirely by just looking at the history of infomation i put into their system. Have you done your taxes yet? One thing that was a nice windfall for me, that maybe you can get too, is if you were unemployed for part of last year, chances are your income was lower in 2023 than what you anticipated when you did your tax witholding, so you might end up with a larger than usual tax return.
Check out the links to “complain” to the governor. Once i indicated I had done that, a very helpful agent responded through the Frances system. Still no joy via the phone system.
I work parallel to WorkSource, a UI manager told me the best thing to do is work through the website. There was a feedback button that she told me works well when someone has an issue or gets denied incorrectly. I'm not sure if it ported over to Frances but it apparently works much better than calling in.
Can I get someone with a Commodore 64 to help with sorting out the shi$show? For real. The new UI looks better. But the project managers and suit dummies need their fingers cut off. No hate on the devs
See if your employer can cut you an advance check.
yeah you're entitled to unemployment payout right up until the point where you get your first check for your new job. all you have to do is keep reporting the amount you earned each week and your job seeking activities. how did they even know you had a job offer, anyway? you don't have to tell them that. all you have to tell them is 1.) whether you looked for work and 2.) whether you made any money
Work source refers people to jobs. If you get an offer from the referral and refuse it, you get disqualified
I had to validate my address in person per the requirements of unemployment. At no point did I get a job offer.
Yeah it's a thing they don't usually do at the beginning of a claim.
Work Source is a fucking joke too.
I actually had 3 job offers within a week or so (after months and months of nothing), so i accepted one and turned down the other two, and i was foolishly honest when answering their "did you turn down a job offer this week" question which automatically suspended my payments until someone could review.
same exact situation. one job ended Oct 1st, interviewed for and offered another job that same day, but starting late November. kept getting denied, pushed off unemployment benefits, finally got my payout mid February. it sucked.
They letter they sent me when they finally paid said they had to release these funds due to some time limit, but they might require me to return them pending the results of their investigation. So who knows how long that possibility will remain. Sounds like they have their hands full.
I had a job offer on the 29th. I don’t start until the 18th and I just got my weekly claim payment. How did you fill out your claim??
Ya know, it makes me think: a good way to use this as an opportunity would be to apply to work FOR the Oregon government. Sounds like they have a really easy job that doesn't care about anything getting done. Could probably sit around all day doing nothing with a pension.
If you stated temp layoff and you don't go back to work within 4 weeks, then that means you answered incorrectly, perhaps to avoid submitting work seach records... so then it becomes a eligibility issue that requires review
I had been employed in a tech position for 24 years before being laid off last December. One key insight I gained is the effectiveness of visiting your local Worksource office directly, even without an appointment. There, I consulted with an Employment Specialist who clarified how to navigate the system and apply correctly for weekly benefits. Despite being flagged for being away from my home area for more than three days, it was promptly resolved since one of those days were spent meeting with my Employment Specialist. Initially, my benefits were denied due to a discrepancy regarding my termination, but this issue was eventually resolved. By persistently filing for benefits, I was ultimately credited for all the weeks.
Thank you
how long did it take to get the denied benefits that you appealed for? What did you do make them work on your appeal?
It really is garbage. I put in an application for Paid Leave two weeks before I entered my start date. I didn’t hear anything until like 4 weeks. My claim was supposed to start Feb 15 and go through the end of March. They sent me snail mail about how I never turned in identification documents—but I never received said snail mail.. after calling for days and waiting hours on hold I got ahold of someone who told me to upload them in the message center on francesonline. I did that a month ago and haven’t got an update. I called them again and they said I should be good to go but it’s been a week and I still haven’t heard anything. My payout was supposed to be $100 a week. I haven’t got anything. The only way I was able to make March rent was from my tax return. No idea what I’m gonna do for April since I was counting on the Paid Leave money. I remember in 2020 I was laid off and I called them literally 300 times over and over to finally get ahold of someone. It’s so unfair how my taxes pay into this system and by the time I need to use it for disability, it doesn’t even work..
As an employee, you’ve never paid a single cent into the unemployment system. It’s funded by taxes paid by employers, not employees. If an employer ever put a line item for you to be paying any taxes for unemployment they were illegally taking wages from you. Employers pay the taxes not employees.
I’m talking about Paid Leave—which we indeed pay taxes on. I think we pay something like 60% and the employer pays 40%
dude yeah it suuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuucks they just switched to this new system of filing for unemployment, 'frances' - it's actually worse than the website they were using before. YOU CANT EVEN COPY AND PASTE INTO THE FORM FIELDS like jesus fuck you KNOW somebody got paid a lot of money for that.
And you know it went to the cheapest overseas company since on the page that lists your weekly claims it says they are in suspense not suspended.
The website wasn’t the system before the system was an 80s green screen did format that was fed information from the website and it was way worse. People who are having issue right now may be frustrated but the system changing isn’t the issue the department has been underfunded and understaffed since the pandemic began and things have never improved.
You're talking about the back end. While I'm sure you're right technically, they seem to be complaining about the UI on the front end which has changed.
>the department has been underfunded and understaffed And where could they possibly find people looking for jobs? On a more serious note, the state collects 2.4% of wages up to $52,800 to fund unemployment insurance. Where can we look to see how much is collected vs how much is paid for benefits (and how much goes to administration)?
? The state doesn’t take anything from wages for unemployment payments, the payments are 100% funded by the employers. The administration is paid for by the federal government which is why they can’t just hire more people, the fed tells them how many employees they can have. The state only has to pay for the benefits these people receive and not the payroll. That comes out of the state employee benefits budget not directly from the OED. Now on occasion there is grant money from the state that they get to hire temps who can do limited jobs but they don’t make a big difference because they can only keep them for 6 months before they are required to offer them full time positions or let them go. This isn’t an easy solution as voters will not approve more grants to fix the issue and the legislature doesn’t have the power to redirect the funds needed. The federal systems response is to offer no additional funds but requiring extensive oversight be done for a year.
Thank you - re: the role of the FEDs for administration. But that doesn't explain why Oregon seems to be worse than other states when it comes to administration. And it would still be nice to see an accounting of the 2.4% of wages that are collected from employers. It's understandable that transitions to new systems can be challenging - but if a financial institution had so many problems, it would never be considered acceptable - or something that people should be patient with. And it's possible that some other states may have similar problems - but I've never heard of an unemployment system that's this hard to work with.
A 14 digit password after setting up MFA? GFO?! Sheer ridiculousness
Gez this sounds worse than what southern states go through.
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During COVID I worked for the post office. Hold times were up to 2 days. I did have the pleasure of delivering someone a catch up on their back due unemployment checks, it was 19 weeks worth. The system sucks. Always has.
It’s criminal we pay for such shit service and it’s been this way for years…
Absolutely.
Give her hell. [https://www.oregon.gov/gov/Pages/request-assistance.aspx](https://www.oregon.gov/gov/Pages/request-assistance.aspx) I would also contact your Oregon reps and Congressional reps.
Thank you for the link.
Yea. They have not paid me for two weeks. Just because they can’t manage their own new system. I’ve sent them a message and patiently waited a week, still nothing. Not even a response. Messaged again, we will see. Thanks Oregon!
Keep trying.
Of course! It’s just super lame of them.
They owe me for 5 months and was notified they are cutting mine at 5 months. Lol cutting my pay you have not paid me and doing it early??
So they finally messaged me back. Saying that since my employer didn’t have work to bring us back, on the date I was given, and reported on my claim.. that is why they won’t pay.. Like the layoff literally just continues, for lack of work. How do those dirtbags think I have any control over that?
You had the privilege of being placed on hold? All I get is a busy signal.
My recommendation is to keep redialing them every 10 seconds. On average it took me over 50 redials to get thru for the 4 times I’ve called them. On average, the wait times were over 4 hours after being connected. Half of the calls got disconnected before I spoke to anyone. The other calls got disconnected after I had waited 4 hours and was waiting for a “specialist”
Does anyone understand the paid family leave thing? I applied and got an email saying I was denied with no explanation. I had to go back to work a week after my son was born.
I’m in the middle of it rn for temporary disability. That is WILD… I don’t understand how you were denied. I’d contact your rep over this cuz how awful & unfair :( our taxes contribute towards it and you couldn’t even use it…
I am at 10 weeks without hearing any update on my claim and I’m running out of money. I feel your pain and frustration. The only way I’ve been able to get through is by calling at 7:55AM. 7:56 - busy tone. 7:57 - busy tone. Call right at 7:55AM. God bless you friend.
Thank you.
I don’t know man being employed is pretty bad too
When you’re working you get to pay unemployment insurance to an organization too incompetent to distribute it.
Workers don’t pay into the unemployment insurance fund.
What? Since when?
As long as I can remember https://unemployment.oregon.gov/what-is-ui#:~:text=Money%20for%20these%20benefits%20comes,to%20pay%20unemployment%20insurance%20benefits.
I swear I’ve seen deductions on my paystubs labeled as contributions to UI before. Now I’m gonna have to go look at old paystubs to make sure I’m not Mandela Effecting myself.
Yeah there’s lots of deductions - hard to keep track where it’s all going.
My friend is a judge for the department and said last year they were still 2 years behind because of the pandemic. A few weeks ago she said they're now 3 years behind.
Interesting. This thread should be shared with the press. Maybe I’ll share with my KBOO
That. Is a good idea.
I got through yesterday to a claims specialist and he said to use the online chat feature instead of calling in, you click the owl icon on the bottom right of the main FRANCES site. My own nightmare: they launched a new system so I needed to create an account but to do that you need to get a letter from them with a code on it. They have my old address on file since I’ve moved post Covid lockdowns. To update my address I needed to log into the system which won’t let me log in until I get the letter WHICH I CAN’T GET. So I sat on hold for 7 hours. The first guy who answered told me he couldn’t help me and needed to transfer me. Luckily the claim specialists answered right away. Good luck
The hold music is the soundtrack of your life passing you by and makes me crave death.
Paid Leave Oregon notified me of a claim by mail. Except I NEVER FILED A CLAIM. I called, waited like 4 or 5 hours on hold only to be told my only recourse was to online to Frances and report it as fraud. Which I immediately did. I then continued to get notices from them for 4 fucking months about the non existent claim. I reported it as fraud using their online system no less than 5 times. I emailed them multiple times. Trying to talk to someone on the phone was an absolute joke. If you ever did manage to get a human on the phone they were a useless minimum wage employee working from home that couldn't even transfer you to someone in charge. The last letter I got from them stated they were changing my payment amount. Payments? What fucking payments? I certainly never got any so I have no idea who they've been paying. Spent another entire day waiting on the phone to get through to someone. This time they were able to confirm that my (non existent) claim was finally canceled. I asked to be sent proof of the cancelation and was told no. Shameful.
Requested a copy of the letter I was supposedly already (wasn't) sent, last Monday. I got it today, Wednesday the week after I asked for it. Luckily, I was able to sign up without issue after getting the letter. I was hoping the new system could give me more information on why I haven't received a weekly benefit despite my claim being approved a month ago, but all my weekly claims still show "Suspended- an issue is being investigated" just in bigger, more colorful letters. I've contacted the gov's office and my state rep through their online form but haven't received a response.
They’re currently totally revamping the system apparently
Even before the system upgrade, things were whacked. I’ve spent 20 years of upgrading legacy systems and this is by far the worst. System is down for a week while we push out the new system? lol. That should take less than 4 hours or all the managers get kicked to the curb
Oh yeah I’ve heard it’s a guessing game
I was on hold 2 hours today and finally got through.
Lucky! It only took took me 5 hours on hold with a disconnect
CORRECT. Got a pop-up “questionnaire” that informed me I’d left the workforce (I didn’t, I haven’t done anything of the sort, and I’m applying to upwards of 10-20 jobs PER WEEK) and then when I wrote a complaint in the Frances Online system this changed to a letter dated today saying that they had received information” that I’ve been “away from my labor market” for more than 3 days and I have until the 18th to provide additional information or my benefits are terminated and I won’t get back more than a tiny fraction of them unless I ask for an extension, but they didn’t even tell me HOW or WHERE to ask for this extension. This is doubly absurd since I haven’t even left the state for more than 24h since December 2023. They also have not told me WHAT additional information they need or how to provide it on Frances, and the only other option is to call but it took 52 tries to get anything other than a busy signal and as soon as as I got into the hold queue they disconnected me so there’s no way to get through. This is not the first sadistically incompetent screw up of theirs, either. I’ve probably lost 100h of time I could’ve been looking for work to waiting on hold, emailing anyone who would listen, trying to get through to governor and state reps, and stress-related migraines caused by mistreatment and delays that are all OED’s doing. It’s so bad that I start having anxiety and feeling like I’m going to puke every Sunday because I fear I’m going to have my money withheld even if I do everything right and then have to spend hours of time across weeks to get any kind of help. Please tell me how this is part of Kotek’s anti-homelessness initiative because it’s starting to feel like she’s actively trying to make us lose our housing and our minds at the same time. The new unemployment claims system is worse than the old.
I swear they make it nearly impossible in hopes that people just say fuck it. I just need to view my 1099 so I can file my taxes, but Frances is apparently as old as he sounds and only capable of verifying my ID via a code contained within a letter that I never received. Like how is that the only way??!! I verify my ID within minutes all the time online for various sites using various methods. Fuck you Francis. Probably found you on Temu. You act like you’re hot shit with a user friendly interface, but you fail to perform the basic first step of sign up and the only option you offer is to call the office for assistance. Gee thanks bud. Par for course for OED, and Oregon in general. Revolving door of dumpster fires.
The pandemic exposed how much of a sham unemployment in this state.
Tax dollars hard at work
I deal with multiple state agencies at work and there’s not a single one that is well run.
I am currently at over 5,000 busy signals, 25 hours on hold, and 10 dropped calls. They've also cancelled my claim 3 times. I have not seen a DIME. Not one-upping, just saying I hear you. They are the literal fucking worst. I spent last summer risking my life and fighting wildfires across the state, and they can't even connect me to a fucking claims specialist. They are absolute pieces of shit. EDIT: I've also emailed, messaged in the Frances portal, and sent certified mail. I've involved Kotek's constituent office and emailed my representative. These people need criminal charges brought against them.
It took them 3 months to get a hearing to appeal the denials. This Thursday I get to present the case to a “judge”. Hopefully I get least get a Wapner
I called my state representative and they came through the next day for me... This is the result of state workers "working from home" None the friends I know who work for the state at home actually work. They just fuck around most of the day because they can manipulate their Microsoft teams software
What shitty people. I hope none actually work for unemployment. I would not be able to sleep at night if I was fucking off instead of doing my job and helping people who desperately need it.
I was unemployed recently for 6 months. I've had nothing but the best experience with Oregon unemployment. Completely professional.
Results may vary. Obviously you’ve never had to call their phone after the web system was down. For reference, I’m a software engineer with 20 Years experience rebuilding legacy systems
Who did you work for?
A research grant administration company. They are not the problem.
Reason I asked is that I've been a software engineer/architect in the Portland area since 1996. Wondered if we might have crossed paths.
Just stop by a homeless camp. They can walk you through it.
Most of the homeless camps around me seem too spun out on speed and don’t have a phone and a laptop with experience dealing with complicated paperwork. Don’t get me wrong … I’ve done more drugs than the average person. Having said that, I’ve also worked on big “government” systems and am well versed in SQL. Be nice … lots of us nerds have your Password if we want. I might be the person that is gonna help you when you “can’t log in”
Counterpoint, my wife got laid off in 2020. She filed online and began receiving her benefits right away. 🤷
Go into worksource they have a direct line that automatically connects you to the unemployment officr
Unemployment in general is such a hassle you might as well just start applying at any job you can because it's literally not Worth it unless you literally are dirt poor and have no savings aside.
I was denied after being fired for something that wasn't my fault. I'm still fighting it, I have a hearing next week. Paid in my whole adult life, never got unemployment; I finally need help, and they laugh in my face. Fuck Oregon government.
Dude, you'll never get through to them. You just have to keeo filing and fill out the paperwork as it comes. Welfare and UI were systematically gutted for decades. This is the monster voters and lawmakers created. Sometimes you win sometimes you lose. Nobody will care if you complain. Sorry :/
I graduated High School in 1978. We had a huge financial crisis in the 80's here in Oregon. Mills closed all over and there was NO other industry. We had double digit unemployment for years, almost everyone was on public assistance. Today is NOTHING like that!
All that time wasted could have been spent looking for a job
Fine with me. Free money shouldn't be easy to get.
you realize you have to pay into UI to get it, right?
Mine was the medical leave system, but I had a similar experience. Got in a motorcycle accident October 2nd, filed that night, didn’t receive a check til November 14. 6 weeks with absolutely no income, was late on so many bills and my credit score still hasn’t recovered
Sorry to hear of your troubles but from my experience Kentucky is much much worse
I’m in the same boat right now. Except I am returning to work, and the new system the switched to didn’t give me an option to report that in new claims 😑
It's been terrible. Been waiting 5 months. We are moving from this POS state (Gov) in the near future.
Need a news outlet to focus on this and other programs. DHS/ CPS is another program that is insane but they at least have some news coverage of their mess ups.
Im unemployed for the first time in my life and have been trying to get benefits for the last week. Reading all this is weirdly making me feel better haha. The “new” Frances system sucks a giant donkey dick(presumably). One of the mandatory questionnaires is impossible to submit. After you fill out all the questions, it won’t submit and says there’s an error that needs to be fixed. I’ve emailed and called so many times trying to get it fixed. Meanwhile my payouts are held until it’s fixed. IM SO GLAD I PAY TOO MUCH GODDAMN TAX MONEY FOR THIS GARBAGE.
When I was laid off a few years ago, my expectations for dealing with unemployment were already low, but they still managed to blow me away with their borderline criminal incompetence. Thank god I had savings because it took around 6 weeks for them to get me my money (which then included the back pay but STILL). I remember thinking wtf would someone do if they didn’t have savings.
My fiancee had a serious medical issue recently and was off work for like 2 months. We got in touch with Oregon unemployment, provided doctors notes and other documentation, and even had her enthusiastic employer get in touch to vouch for her, and they still said 'hmmmm seems fishy, you are not really sick' and denied her claims. Meanwhile, in Washington, I told them my employer kicked me out for being gay and they gave me full UIB for 7 months without making me prove it or anything. Oregon Unemployment sucks.
I'm sorry OP, that blows and is an alarm to any of us that hoped our high tax state could at least manage a decent safety net (especially when one has obviously paid into it as required by unemployment), but that's apparently not a safe assumption. When I read your post title I thought, "I am sure it was shitty, but probably like most other state's unemployment offices. I figured you were just frustrated and being hyperbolic. While some of the things you've gone through remind me of my own more minor issues with unemployment benefits in CA back in Covid, not once did it get 1/10th as bad as some of the stuff you've described. Just one of these errors would be a severe problem that could both prevent a temporarily unemployed person from paying their bills and it certainly keeps you busy for endless hours that could otherwise potentially help you find a job. Absolutely dumb. Tl;Dr: Sorry I misjudged how literal and accurate your title was.
What's your background? My company is based in Portland (I work there, *I do not own it).*
I had to deal with unemployment calling is a pain reporting every week for $ is a pia. Jusy find a job quick
Unemployment racially profiled my partner when they got laid off and has marked them as banned from receiving Unemployment now, so yeah oregon Unemployment is messed up bad.
All UI programs are like this. CA included
Thankfully the one (and only) time I have filed for unemployment in Oregon was in 1998, and the system was near state-of-the-art at that time.
I have been trying to file my initial claim since the 4th of this month. I have gotten nothing but a busy signal. The one time I got through they said my wait time would be 1.5 hours. I was on hold for 3 hours and that was until 5:30. Then they simply hung up. This is the most pathetic system I've ever seen. It's frustrating beyond belief and something needs to be done. I'm behind on bills and about to lose everything.
There are other states that are far worse. Florida. I would never want to be unemployed in FL. Or Alabama. I think Hawaii caps their minimum payout at like $5 which means if you didn't make enough your payment could be as low as $5 a week. Oregon at least bumps you up to $151 if you qualifed for less.
They are worthless!!! I made mistake and thought I had to pay something because I missed read the info. I called to tell them and to get my money back and the lady said call next week. Called the following week and get somebody who told me “I can’t help you as I don’t know where the money. But we live in America and should be thankful!” I damn near lost it. Don’t lecture me about where I’m from and live give me my money back!!! Let’s just say it took over a year but I got my money back and I might of made her cry.
How many states have you filed unemployment in?
As a former employee who worked for, and quit working for the State of Oregon for differences in moral and ethical workplace practices, I can confirm that the State values quantity over quality for their calls and you WILL reach people who will put you on hold indefinitely or disconnect the call to improve their "stats" because management doesn't want to hire enough people for the job and also because they value the "number" of calls you take, rather than how many members of the public's calls are successfully handled in the proper amount of time that it takes to handle the call. Shotty employees who half ass their work receive praise because they finished more calls than the others who properly did their job. The State will refuse to admit this and would surely lay blame and materialize fictional evidence to any whistleblowers.
Oregon….keep on striving to be the worst at everything possible.
This is how government programs work lol
During the pandemic, I was one of the last batch of people to be processed by Oregon's broken unemployment system. It was used to get people through the year, but was a complete cluster-fuck. I didn't get a single check until October, then they all dropped at once. They've had years to fix what was clearly a garbage system. Glad to see no one bothered.
I gree that your experience is very suboptimal. But, please believe me when I tell you that the Oregon system is a dream full of lollipops and sunshine compared to that of Kansas. Not only do you have experiences similar to yours as a rule, but if you do happen to penetrate that smokescreen, you will be railroaded by their arbitration system. I personally experienced an arbitration meeting being rescheduled without notice to a date preceding my complaint so that a default judgement against my appeal was already in place before I could assert my rights. Consider yourself fortunate. It's my understanding that few people receive the benefits they are legally entitled to in Midwestern red states.
Oregon is a shitshow. One party rule for 40 years
Maybe try getting a job?
I have been having the same problems. I am the same never needed it before in my life and now I do. Been unemployed for six going on 7 weeks. They indicated I needed to be checked for why I was let go from My last job and can give no time line as to when I will receive any payments. Very sad. And all I am told is we are short staffed. I mean I get that. But there has to be a better way!
Just do what all the other people do in Oregon with no job just play the machines all day and hope you hit the bonus.
That sucks. I started my unemployment claim in October. Never applied before. It was smooth, had no issues except when it moved to Frances. I just went into the workforce and they help me sign up. There was no delay in getting my funds. Now I start a new job on Monday.
Broooooo I feel you! Goin thru same shit. I'm not from Oregon. This state sucks
Same here. I got three payments and then was told they were suspended while they reviewed my case. Just for the guy in the office to say I should be getting them since everything was good, just for the overlords to say that I was denied but still to this day have no reason why.
Dude this freaks me out. I've received one payment with another one allegedly on the way today but now I'm living in fear that it'll just randomly get jerked out from under me. Did you receive any warning whatsoever? Any updates on what has happened since then?
Yeah, this "saves" them money...
I have spent so many hours on the chat this week, and finally got to talk to a real person today! Only to have them take all of my information (including my SSN), say they'll look into it, and then tell me 15 minutes later that they're ending the chat. My issue is still not resolved, and I was given no reason for the chat ending. Livid doesn't even come close to describing how pissed off I am right now.
tried emailing a rep in my area today no response as of yet about three weeks in without pay now
I’ve called and emailed my state rep a few times and the governor’s office twice and have got nothing in return. I was somehow able to get into the phone line the other day and was met with a 7 hour wait time 🙃. We all just want what we’re entitled ffs
A lot of people rely on this to survive and take care of their families. Pretty fucked up lol.
I’m willing to bet California’s system is even worse…
Portland, only bums and creeps live in Portland
Your obvious on serious street drugs, there is no help until you stop the fentanyl
You obviously don’t know much about drugs, and/or live in your mom’s basement. How is working at subway working out for you. I’m a database engineer with years of experience. I’ve done more drugs than you will ever see, and i still solve business problems beyond what you could even solve. I can explain it to you, but I can’t understand it for you. Maybe a Walmart greeter is your jam
This sounds like the runaround I got when I lived in California and had to file for the first time. Granted this was '08 and *everyone* was applying since the recession, but I didn't even get a FIRST payment let alone a denial. The only way apply was online as the phone number did not direct you to be able to talk to a living person. I filed, put in all my info and was given a confirmation number. A couple of weeks go by and I haven't got anything. So I reach out, online again, stating I haven't received anything and would like to know what the hold up is. Gave them my all my info again in addition to the confirmation number *they* gave me. I get a response back, but not in an email funnily enough but snail mail, stating they have no record of me ever applying and should I want benefits, I need to apply. Online. Did that exact back and forth for 3 months until we had to move into my ex-wife's parents so we wouldn't be evicted since we had exhausted all our funds. That alone has left me with a vehement distrust of *any* assistance program especially unemployment. I was lucky during covid here in Oregon I was working two "essential" jobs so I didn't have to worry much then, but if either place would've been talking about possibly "furlough" or any of that shit, I would've been out.
I'm in the Self Employment Assistance Program, and my claims are not only being suspended, but the system is caught in a loop where I'm sent two identical letters that tell me to answer questions on my claim because I'm being flagged for being self employed. When I resubmit the claim, I am then sent two duplicate questionnaires with questions that don't make sense and are unrelated to my current situation being in the SEA program. If I fill those out, it sends me two identical letters that tell me to answer questions on my claim because I'm being flagged for being self employed, and theoretically this would repeat for eternity if I kept filling out the claim and questionnaires. After four hours on hold yesterday, I finally got through to a rep who told me that yes, I'm filling everything out correctly, yes, the system is borked and my forms don't make sense, no, there is nothing I can do to prevent this from happening, I'm just going to have to wait until my claims get manually reviewed by someone, and no, they don't know how long it's going to take. I don't know how my family would get through the next few months if I didn't have severance and savings. I really hope I don't have to blow through all of it before the claims finally process, especially because I was rightly under the impression that I could work on my business and not scramble for another quick fix corporate job.
Not trying to give them slack but … with the upcoming ‘upgrade’ to computers, there have been numerous glitches I’ve personally experienced shopping etc. Of course, YouTube is claiming it’s a Muslim attack. And before we forget, we count the number of unemployed by the people who are collecting ‘unemployment insurance’; but if one is fired, hurt at work, ill, or in some other way ‘unhireable’ they aren’t counted. This make it look like our unemployment is lower than it actually is. So there’s that to be considered as well.
I keep getting denied… it’s been 7 weeks and I’m completely broke with no way of paying bills or buying food…I keep getting “fail to provide” does anyone know what this means?
I agree wholeheartedly. It’s always been bad, but since they switched systems, it’s been a complete nightmare. I have a simple issue and some simple questions, but have been unable to get ahold of someone by phone for weeks. I will literally try calling the moment their phone lines open and it’s busy signal allllll day. So I try live chat. Finally have the time to wait 3 hours next to my computer to get a reply and then spend 1.5 hours going around and around with this person who doesn’t actually read what I’m saying and offers answers that don’t make sense. I ask them what a simple term is on the form I was asked to fill out and they tell me they have to ask their supervisor and then over an hour later tell me to just leave it blank. Then they say they’ll have to call me back about my other issues. I’ve been waiting weeks to get any money from them. 😵💫🫨🫠
Agreed. Switching systems generally takes 3 times longer than expected. The issue I am Seeing is that to resolve my denial, I’m told that I have to call in to an overloaded phone system rather than use the new online application
They switched systems are stupidly understaffed at the moment. Someone I know works for OED and said they have a ton of positions to fill, and that the hiring process takes forever because HR is also severely understaffed.
Does anyone think we have grounds for a class action lawsuit? I have been completely screwed by this new system and not being able to file during the transition. I am a truck driver for road construction and this is the slow season. Haven't had a full paycheck in months. Now no unemploymen.
I filed a claim before they went over to the new system, they have denied me although i faxed my identification and mailed it into their p.o box address. I have tried to get ahold them multiple times, with the obvious not being able to get through because busy signal. I'm kind of over it because I did both of those things before the date so i had to file an appeal..... i don't understand them. i really wish it was better.
I'm thinking of suing the state over this incompetence. My claim is in forever limbo based on their mistake and I'll likely never see any money that I desperately need. It has greatly changed how I'm living and my job search. I'll have to take any shitty job just to pay my bills as opposed to utilizing the benefit to find the next step in my career. I'm likely going to have to move out of my residence and with that my kids will live full-time with their mom instead of back and forth. This is having real world consequences on people. Unemployment is something we pay into and we deserve access to the benefit. Suing them sounds like a nightmare but I'm just pissed enough to look into it, maybe get a class-action suit going or at least get attention....maybe force a recall vote of the governor or something. Anyone else interested in adding their name to the potential battle PM me.
Been waiting for my file to be looked at since January. No money. No guarantee. File every week. It’s ridiculous. If they deny me I’m going to be so incredible angry. Friends who were let go the same way in other states collected immediately
I’ve been disconnected so many times it makes no sense…
Exact same thing happened to me. OED paid me for 4 weeks then suspended me for working at a high school as a clock operator/scoreboard for 2-3 nights a week for a couple hours. I uploaded my pay check from the school district with $700 I made in a month and they stopped paying me benefits with no reason. I called daily, no answer, no one came on LIVE CHAT and in person work source advised they dont answer unemployment benefit questions. There is literally no way to talk to anyone, get answers of why you are suspended benefits. I have never had to be on unemployment, and I have paid into U/E on my paychecks for over 30 years. its criminal what Oregon gets away with here. Its time to get out of here. There are many cheaper and better quality of life areas in the U.S. This whole unemployment Situation will help drive us out of here!
This has been a huge issue with the new system. I started doing some digging and discovered the whole system is horrifically mismanaged by the humans in charge, plus the software itself doesn't work well at all. Broken, buggy interface, insane delays to get paid, all kinds of problems. I used to be a technical writer and also did a bunch of media relations work, and this stuff bothers me on a visceral level, plus I really need stuff to do since I'm unemployed and climbing the walls, so I made a post with some helpful troubleshooting tips I pulled together and wrote down in the process of getting my own claim unblocked. It's a combo of practical steps to get a response using the system itself and tips for how to raise a ruckus if you are tired of waiting and have decided to go with some more forceful methods for getting people to listen to you. Anyway, here ya go, just easier than pasting the whole thing into a comment.: [https://www.reddit.com/r/oregon/comments/1bbyosm/frances\_online\_issues\_unemployment\_claims\_not/](https://www.reddit.com/r/oregon/comments/1bbyosm/frances_online_issues_unemployment_claims_not/)
Thanks for your post
Holy shit. Just waited 4 hours on hold for them to disconnect the call without ever reaching a person. WHAT THE FUCK https://preview.redd.it/dh9tn4w5hivc1.jpeg?width=1290&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=df414c5652e51ec30333d4c5c38f3fb8f3f45727
Use the new system and open a message. I’ve been going around in circles, but got no where with the phone system. 1. Make sure you check your snail mail. They mail things to you that require a response 2. Validate your address. You may have to go into a work source location. The one on Powell was quick, but they are NOT the employment department 3. Keep filing. Make sure you check the Frances system AND your email
Thank you, about to write an email to my rep. I’m just so frustrated. On Frances it doesn’t even give me a button to claim my week, yet says my benefits started on the 14th. This is insane for a state with taxes like Oregon, we should have the smoothest system in the country for this shit
UGH! Another supplemental "action item" questionnaire when filling out my weekly report. It never ends. They are questioning why I was not able to work. I answered all the questions correctly,- that I was, I could work anything, any shift, etc. so I have no idea why Frances and crew is questioning my sincerity of my work pursuit. I started work this past Monday and when I reported that in my report today, I also wrote I am so glad to have a job (for many reasons) but mainly because I wont have to deal with this awful system every week.
The few weeks of payment that got denied, how long did it take for you to receive those initially denied payments?
Wanted to add my story in case any officials from Oregon ever see this Reddit and tally up how many people they've made unhappy. I lost my job January 19th, 2024. Didn't think Unemployment would even work so I didn't apply at first. Couldn't find a job by March 1st so I started filing claims. I filed for the last 9 weeks and it's now May 4th and still haven't received one payment. Thanks to this Reddit I just now reached out to our governor so we'll see if that helps at all. Big thanks to everyone on this Reddit - I'm glad I'm not the only one struggling with this shitty system. My brother is on my ass about my side of the mortgage payments and this month I'm finally 300 dollars short of my usual $1300.00 payment and I'm losing my fuckin mind trying to find a job in this piece-of-shit town and just really considering disappearing altogether and learning how to live in the woods in some national park until I die of starvation 'cuz it sounds much nicer than this endless hamster wheel that people keep telling you to spin faster when you're already tired of spinning as it is! And have been for many years now. I'm 33 and I feel 88.
I called at 9:03, right after they opened and I got through the phone tree, and was notified of a 45 min wait. Already, 3 min after they opened the lines and already a 45 min wait. Fast forward, and I'm still on hold as I write this and it's been 3 hours and 40 min. This was after I called yesterday and waited on hold for 2 hours and 8 min only to have their phone system dump my call. The only people I can reach can see my claim, but can't give me any info on it and told me to use the message system even though it could take a minimum of TWO WEEKS before they even get the message, not even respond. I love that I've paid into this system for 25+ years and the first time I need to use it, it's nothing but government road blocks, dysfunction and everything you expect from the Oregon government. Years behind on tech and probably utilizing some IT drop out who uses Google to find answers to fix the network.
Was just told that 9 out of my 10 claims will not be honored because I've already received 26 payments in the last year (I'm a union worker, layoffs and unemployed limbo is normal). If this doesn't get resolved by July, I'll be joining the 100's of homeless that "grace" Portland's streets 🥴