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State Working On Plan For Private Sector To Help Run Unemployment Filing System

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COLUMBUS, Ohio (Statehouse News Bureau) — Thousands of Ohioans says they’re struggling to file unemployment claims through the state’s system that is slow and unresponsive. Gov. Mike DeWine (R-Ohio) says the state is doing a complete overhaul to address the issue.

ODJFS Building
[Karen Kasler | Statehouse News Bureau]
The high number of people in Ohio filing for unemployment, the extension of unemployment benefits, and the additional federal benefits have put a strain on the state’s system.

This has led to many people reporting significant challenges when trying to file.

“It is abundantly clear the state government cannot fix this the way I want it fixed. And so we’re going out into the private sector,” says DeWine. “We’ve already had several meetings. We’ll have something to announce shortly. We’re going to bring some people in from the private sector, quite candidly, to run the unemployment section.”

The move comes as the state prepares to open filings to renewed federal pandemic unemployment assistance.

The state has struggled to keep up with the influx of unemployment compensation filings since the beginning of the pandemic early last year and has started transitioning to a cloud-based system.