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Unemployment claims fall, Oklahomans still waiting for aid

Posted at 5:41 PM, Nov 13, 2020
and last updated 2020-11-13 19:01:39-05

TULSA, Okla. — The Oklahoma Employment Security Commission said unemployment claims fell by 15 percent. Many Oklahomans said they're still caught in the system.

"The ridiculousness of this is incredible," Joni Frank told 2 Works for You. "I don't care if you put pen to paper and issue a check and send it in the mail. People need to get paid."

Franks was let go by a Green Country nonprofit organization at the end of July. She said her position was eliminated due to lack of funding from COVID-19.

"I was a bit shell-shocked, at first," she said. "It is what it is."

Franks said she lost her job July 31 and applied for unemployment assistance on Aug. 2.

13 weeks later her bank account only knows one direction.

She said she talks in circles with the OESC over the phone. Franks said her wages are nowhere to be found in the commission's system.

"It's just been a battle," Franks said.

Franks told 2 Works for You, she provided earnings and tax returns from July 2019 through June 2020. But after rounds of phone conversations, she said, there has been no progress made on her claim.

"I go into the OESC's 'Manage my claim' and it tells you nothing. Nothing about any previous conversations," Franks said. "Not what they've worked on. It says 'Declined. No wages.'"

2 Works for You reached out to OESC officials and did not receive a response.

The OESC handles thousands of claims every day. Visit their website to find out if you qualify and everything you will need to apply for financial aid.


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