NO BENEFIT
I worked really hard for my home – now simple clerical error I’ve tried to fix means it faces being sold against my will
The father explained a new system in his state for the problem
A FATHER said he could lose his home due to a one-digit error on his unemployment claim.
Gregory Smith, from Portland, Oregon, said his family lost its income stream after he was recently laid off from his job.
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Smith explained that he had applied for unemployment insurance through the state’s new website, Frances Online.
He claimed that an apparent glitch in the system left him without any benefit payments for weeks, according to local CBS affiliate KOIN.
"It’s been five weeks, coming up on six weeks now, that I have seen dime zero,” he said.
“We’ve burned through our reserves.”
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Smith explained that he had been the only employed person in his household but that changed when he lost his job at Intel in March.
"I’ve got two kids, a wife, pretty decent house that I worked really, really hard, 50-60 hours a week for seven years to be able to remodel my house and make it this happy place for my family," he said.
He claimed that one incorrect digit was entered into his address when and this meant he was unable to collect his payments.
Smith said this meant he could be forced to sell his home to provide for his family.
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He claimed that he had attempted to fix the error multiple times with the Oregon Employment Department (OED) but had not been able to succeed.
He alleged that he sent messages online, went in person, and stayed on the phone for over six hours with a worker.
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The father blasted the OED and blamed its new online system for his trouble.
“I understand that this Frances Online system has been buggy, but not empowering your employees to fix customers’ problems and customers who have paid into this system through their labor is not tenable,” he said.
“You can’t keep a system that doesn’t work.”
The OED told KOIN that it did not comment on specific claims but said it was looking into Smith’s case.
It’s been five weeks, coming up on six weeks now, that I have seen dime zero.
Gregory Smith
The U.S. Sun has previously reported on another welfare claimant who had experienced issues with this welfare update.
Jason Pence claimed he could soon face homelessness as he waited for his unemployment payments to be sent out.
Pence said he had moved into a hotel after he lost his job, using points from his old employment.
"I had to move out of my apartment because my landlord had filed for an eviction, and I had been at the residence for two weeks after the filing had taken place," he said.
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Pence said he also used Frances Online to file his claim.
The U.S. Sun has reached out to the State of Oregon Employment Department for comment.