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| These Groups Are Giving Out Unemployment Advice. Their Expertise? Personal Experience. | These Groups Are Giving Out Unemployment Advice. Their Expertise? Personal Experience. |
| (about 5 hours later) | |
| Ever since she was furloughed from her job at a go-kart track in Las Vegas, Cyara Neel has been working harder than ever. | Ever since she was furloughed from her job at a go-kart track in Las Vegas, Cyara Neel has been working harder than ever. |
| The mother of three turns on her computer every morning from her king-size memory foam bed, after some coffee, and begins answering the more than 200 comments per hour she receives on the Facebook group she created to help fellow residents of Nevada who are trying to apply for unemployment benefits. | The mother of three turns on her computer every morning from her king-size memory foam bed, after some coffee, and begins answering the more than 200 comments per hour she receives on the Facebook group she created to help fellow residents of Nevada who are trying to apply for unemployment benefits. |
| The idea for the group came after Ms. Neel struggled with her state’s convoluted unemployment website. After filling out her application, an alert popped up that seemed to block it from being processed, and the website did not offer a clear answer to how she could resolve the problem. | The idea for the group came after Ms. Neel struggled with her state’s convoluted unemployment website. After filling out her application, an alert popped up that seemed to block it from being processed, and the website did not offer a clear answer to how she could resolve the problem. |
| Her group, “Unemployment Nevada Information and Help” gained nearly 7,000 members in a week, and Ms. Neel has had to recruit nine additional moderators to help with the workload. “It’s been amazing the outpouring of people helping each other through these tough times,” she said. | Her group, “Unemployment Nevada Information and Help” gained nearly 7,000 members in a week, and Ms. Neel has had to recruit nine additional moderators to help with the workload. “It’s been amazing the outpouring of people helping each other through these tough times,” she said. |
| More than 16 million people have applied for unemployment benefits over the past three weeks, exceeding records by a staggering margin. As state governments struggle to keep up with applications, thousands have found themselves unable to file their claims. They are wading through antiquated websites that often crash or waiting on the phone, sometimes for eight hours or more, to speak to unemployment officers. | More than 16 million people have applied for unemployment benefits over the past three weeks, exceeding records by a staggering margin. As state governments struggle to keep up with applications, thousands have found themselves unable to file their claims. They are wading through antiquated websites that often crash or waiting on the phone, sometimes for eight hours or more, to speak to unemployment officers. |
| Some say they have had to make hundreds of calls to reach a government worker, or were told they need to visit an office in person to have their application processed, even though the offices are closed. | Some say they have had to make hundreds of calls to reach a government worker, or were told they need to visit an office in person to have their application processed, even though the offices are closed. |
| Earlier this week, hundreds of people formed a densely packed mass outside an unemployment office in Hialeah, Fla., where they were waiting to pick up benefit applications when they could not get them online. After an outcry over the lack of social distancing, the crowds moved into their cars, which were lined up over more than a block. | Earlier this week, hundreds of people formed a densely packed mass outside an unemployment office in Hialeah, Fla., where they were waiting to pick up benefit applications when they could not get them online. After an outcry over the lack of social distancing, the crowds moved into their cars, which were lined up over more than a block. |
| Around the country, people like Ms. Neel are stepping in to fill the void, creating an assortment of online communities, most on Facebook and Reddit, to help others navigate the impenetrable state bureaucracies. They offer help to a broad array of workers, from those in the R.V. industry, to dog walkers, delivery workers and restaurant servers. Some of the groups cover entire regions, from Sioux Falls, S.D., to Portland, Ore. | Around the country, people like Ms. Neel are stepping in to fill the void, creating an assortment of online communities, most on Facebook and Reddit, to help others navigate the impenetrable state bureaucracies. They offer help to a broad array of workers, from those in the R.V. industry, to dog walkers, delivery workers and restaurant servers. Some of the groups cover entire regions, from Sioux Falls, S.D., to Portland, Ore. |
| Most have been created not by experts, but by people who have struggled through the unemployment process themselves. | Most have been created not by experts, but by people who have struggled through the unemployment process themselves. |
| “Within minutes of me starting this group I was overwhelmed,” said Shelby Glasson, a Goshen, Ind., resident who created the group “Unemployment Help for the R.V. Industry During Covid-19.” The group now has nearly 400 members and gets dozens of posts a day. | “Within minutes of me starting this group I was overwhelmed,” said Shelby Glasson, a Goshen, Ind., resident who created the group “Unemployment Help for the R.V. Industry During Covid-19.” The group now has nearly 400 members and gets dozens of posts a day. |
| Ms. Glasson has worked in claims for an R.V. dealer in Goshen for 12 years. After taking her Yorkshire terriers out for a walk one afternoon in late March, she opened up her computer and was struck that the same questions about unemployment were popping up all over her social media networks: Should R.V. plant workers claim bonuses they earn or just hourly wages? When were the major factories and plants planning to reopen? | Ms. Glasson has worked in claims for an R.V. dealer in Goshen for 12 years. After taking her Yorkshire terriers out for a walk one afternoon in late March, she opened up her computer and was struck that the same questions about unemployment were popping up all over her social media networks: Should R.V. plant workers claim bonuses they earn or just hourly wages? When were the major factories and plants planning to reopen? |
| Some wondered how the new claims might affect those that many industry workers file every year during the slow season, when periodic layoffs are typical. | Some wondered how the new claims might affect those that many industry workers file every year during the slow season, when periodic layoffs are typical. |
| “Everybody was laid off at the same time and the questions were just flooding and, you know, it’s hard to try and answer one person on one page and then go to another page or another group to answer someone else,” Ms. Glasson said. | “Everybody was laid off at the same time and the questions were just flooding and, you know, it’s hard to try and answer one person on one page and then go to another page or another group to answer someone else,” Ms. Glasson said. |
| One online group has been set up to help laid-off court reporters. Another is targeted at Cheesecake Factory restaurant workers in Las Vegas. | One online group has been set up to help laid-off court reporters. Another is targeted at Cheesecake Factory restaurant workers in Las Vegas. |
| The online communities offer advice, from what phone number to use for calling the local unemployment office to what time of day is best to call. They give tips on how to fill out applications to avoid being “flagged,” which can require a manual review by a government officer and add weeks to the time it takes to receive a check in the mail. | The online communities offer advice, from what phone number to use for calling the local unemployment office to what time of day is best to call. They give tips on how to fill out applications to avoid being “flagged,” which can require a manual review by a government officer and add weeks to the time it takes to receive a check in the mail. |
| People who run the groups acknowledge they are not experts. They advise members to post only about their own experiences — what has worked and what has not — with the hope that winning strategies will emerge through crowdsourcing. | People who run the groups acknowledge they are not experts. They advise members to post only about their own experiences — what has worked and what has not — with the hope that winning strategies will emerge through crowdsourcing. |
| Some delays simply cannot be overcome, because of the lack of staffing in unemployment offices to handle the unprecedented workload. For those whose applications cannot be sped up, the online communities seem to offer a place for venting and mutual support. | Some delays simply cannot be overcome, because of the lack of staffing in unemployment offices to handle the unprecedented workload. For those whose applications cannot be sped up, the online communities seem to offer a place for venting and mutual support. |
| “Camaraderie and a sense that I’m not alone and I hope that everybody else on the site feels the same way,” Ms. Glasson said. | “Camaraderie and a sense that I’m not alone and I hope that everybody else on the site feels the same way,” Ms. Glasson said. |
| Updated July 27, 2020 | |
| One of the most common questions, moderators say, is how to apply for the additional $600 in weekly unemployment payments approved in the federal stimulus bill, which also opened the door to independent contract workers who were not previously eligible for benefits. | One of the most common questions, moderators say, is how to apply for the additional $600 in weekly unemployment payments approved in the federal stimulus bill, which also opened the door to independent contract workers who were not previously eligible for benefits. |
| “There are hundreds of people on there that are saying ‘Yay, I finally got my unemployment benefits,’ but the most these people are getting is the $247 a week,” said Wendy Manard, who created the “Louisiana Coronavirus Unemployment Legal Advice Group.” “That’s not enough for most people. Everybody’s really anxious about getting the extra $600 a week.” | “There are hundreds of people on there that are saying ‘Yay, I finally got my unemployment benefits,’ but the most these people are getting is the $247 a week,” said Wendy Manard, who created the “Louisiana Coronavirus Unemployment Legal Advice Group.” “That’s not enough for most people. Everybody’s really anxious about getting the extra $600 a week.” |
| Ms. Manard is a personal-injury lawyer in New Orleans whose work has slowed down significantly because fewer cars are on the road, which means fewer accidents. Many clients are asking instead about how to get unemployment benefits. | Ms. Manard is a personal-injury lawyer in New Orleans whose work has slowed down significantly because fewer cars are on the road, which means fewer accidents. Many clients are asking instead about how to get unemployment benefits. |
| Though Ms. Manard had some experience with employment law in the past, she has quickly studied up. The Covid-19 group she created online surpassed in a few days the size of the legal advice group she has maintained for her law firm for years. | Though Ms. Manard had some experience with employment law in the past, she has quickly studied up. The Covid-19 group she created online surpassed in a few days the size of the legal advice group she has maintained for her law firm for years. |
| She checks the Louisiana state unemployment website daily to keep up with frequent updates and creates videos to help members — who include real estate agents, Uber drivers, personal trainers, barbers and restaurant workers — to understand what the changes will mean for them. | She checks the Louisiana state unemployment website daily to keep up with frequent updates and creates videos to help members — who include real estate agents, Uber drivers, personal trainers, barbers and restaurant workers — to understand what the changes will mean for them. |
| “It’s so many new rules and regulations all at once, and a lot of these people who have been impacted the worst are blue-collar workers,” Ms. Manard said. “They live paycheck to paycheck, and all of a sudden, they’ve lost their jobs or their kids are out of school and they’re like ‘What do I do now?’ It’s scary. It’s overwhelming for a lot of people.” | “It’s so many new rules and regulations all at once, and a lot of these people who have been impacted the worst are blue-collar workers,” Ms. Manard said. “They live paycheck to paycheck, and all of a sudden, they’ve lost their jobs or their kids are out of school and they’re like ‘What do I do now?’ It’s scary. It’s overwhelming for a lot of people.” |
| Several moderators of the new groups said that the experience of being suddenly inundated with queries has given them sympathy for the government workers who are processing the claims. | Several moderators of the new groups said that the experience of being suddenly inundated with queries has given them sympathy for the government workers who are processing the claims. |
| “The unemployment workers that are taking care of all of our cases are as overwhelmed with this whole system as we are now,” Ms. Glasson said. | “The unemployment workers that are taking care of all of our cases are as overwhelmed with this whole system as we are now,” Ms. Glasson said. |
| But they are also careful not to make the same mistakes they have seen state government website administrators make. When Ms. Neel, who created the Nevada group, decided last week to redesign her page to make it easier to use, she made sure beforehand that her moderators would be available to answer questions from members while she went about the task of deleting 24,000 comments and organizing them under topics — questions about student unemployment, interstate claims and appeals. | But they are also careful not to make the same mistakes they have seen state government website administrators make. When Ms. Neel, who created the Nevada group, decided last week to redesign her page to make it easier to use, she made sure beforehand that her moderators would be available to answer questions from members while she went about the task of deleting 24,000 comments and organizing them under topics — questions about student unemployment, interstate claims and appeals. |
| During the few hours a day when she steps away from her computer to help her children with homework or to make dinner, her new work follows her on her cellphone. | During the few hours a day when she steps away from her computer to help her children with homework or to make dinner, her new work follows her on her cellphone. |
| “If I walk away it goes with me,” she said. “Pretty much everywhere other than the bathroom.” | “If I walk away it goes with me,” she said. “Pretty much everywhere other than the bathroom.” |
| Nicholas Bogel-Burroughs and Kimberley McGee contributed reporting. | Nicholas Bogel-Burroughs and Kimberley McGee contributed reporting. |