Kansas Department of Labor Acting Secretary Ryan Wright acknowledges the ongoing series of problems his department has had getting people benefits if they have lost their jobs due to coronavirus, but he promises they will get the money they are due.
Wright made that promise multiple times during KVOE’s Newsmaker 2 segment Wednesday. He says the department has finally “turned the corner” with over two million claims paid out to the tune of $2 billion since March.
The department is upgrading antiquated equipment and also has brought on an extra 200 temporary workers to answer phones and process claims.
Besides the early and ongoing issues, the Labor Department is now joining forces with other labor departments across the country in battling a massive fraudulent benefit scam. The scheme involving the federal Pandemic Unemployment Assistance Program started coming to light in Kansas around the end of September. Wright says people or businesses receive a letter from the Labor Department saying they have applied for benefits when they haven’t.
Wright says the Labor Department has stopped 45,000 fraudulent claims from being paid, but he also expects some phony claims likely have been paid due to the sheer volume of the scam. In fact, KDOL was originally planning to pay out about $37 million through the program but determined $35 million of that was fraudulent.
Wright took over the department after prior leader Delia Garcia resigned following an effort by the Labor Department to claw back duplicate payments. Wright says less than 10 people were affected by that move, but he also says the Labor Department has taken steps so clawbacks don’t happen again.
If you believe you have been victimized, go online to www.reportfraud.ks.gov to fill out online paperwork that automatically generates a police report. If you have questions about the benefit process or overdue benefits or if you need to submit claim information, go online to www.getkansasbenefits.gov.
