Governor Susana Martinez Tackles Issues at Department of Workforce Solutions Call Center

Statement

Governor Susana Martinez issued the following statement after announcing immediate actions to improve efficiency, operations, and service at the Unemployment Insurance Call Center at the New Mexico Department of Workforce Solutions. The Governor made the announcement at a news conference at Department of Workforce Solutions headquarters in Albuquerque.

"The long wait times and persistent lack of service at the Department of Workforce Solutions are unacceptable," said Governor Martinez. "These ongoing problems have plagued the department for years thanks to a hiring freeze on federally-funded positions implemented by the previous administration. Whatever the cause, it's time to finally take action. I am ordering the Unemployment Insurance Call Center to extend its hours of
operation to help accommodate the large volume of incoming calls. Additionally, I have reassigned current workforce solutions employees to begin answering calls, ordered the immediate hiring of new representatives that are currently in training, and instructed the department to reach out to former employees to invite them back to work. I have also directed the department to hire an additional 20 representatives and fast-track their
training. These actions will immediately increase operational support at the call center and nearly double the number of staff taking calls by mid-February.

"While increasing the call center staff and extending hours will provide relief in the coming weeks, I have also ordered Workforce Solutions to develop a long-term plan to address these issues. This plan will focus heavily on making it easier for New Mexicans to conduct business online and through other self-service features."

"Ultimately, my goal is to minimize the need for New Mexico workers to collect
unemployment by putting our economy back on track. I have proposed that we encourage small businesses to hire unemployed workers by covering part of their salaries for the first six months through the State's unemployment fund. There is little doubt that the best solution to the ongoing problems at Workforce Solutions is to create an environment that allows New Mexicans to get back to work and allows our state to prosper once again."

Source