After 12 News investigation, state explains unemployment backlog

After WISN 12 News Investigates helped a West Allis veteran get his unemployment benefits after waiting six months, the newsroom has been inundated with requests to help dozens of other people who are still waiting for their benefits.

Secretary Caleb Frostman told WISN 12 News since March, they`ve "paid about 510,000 people about $3.6 billion. There are 96,000 claimants in Wisconsin still waiting on at least one payment in our adjudication area, so we`re making progress week over week, continuing to grind through those oldest claims first, but obviously we`ve got continued work ahead of us, as we continue to grind down the mountain of claims that have piled up since COVID hit Wisconsin."

Frostman said unemployment jumped from 3% in March to 13% in April and they weren`t prepared.

They hired 1,300 extra staff members to handle the claims and could hire even more.

WISN 12 News asked why some workers have heard anything about their claim in weeks or even months....