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CASEY: 7 months later, furloughed waitress hasn't seen a penny of unemployment
CASEY: 7 months later, furloughed waitress hasn't seen a penny of unemployment
Deanna Kirchner is among tens of thousands of Virginia workers whose unemployment claims have been hung up for one reason or another at the Virginia Employment Commission. Meanwhile, that agency has been besieged with both unemployment claims and appeals, and there's a months-long backlog of the latter.
Dan Casey 18 hrs ago
Deanna Kirschner still has the document — a “determination of benefits” letter, dated March 27, issued by the Virginia Employment Commission. It arrived after the restaurant where she waited tables for 18 years furloughed the server during a temporary, pandemic-caused closure this past spring. ... The letter said Kirschner, 55, was eligible for $203 per week in unemployment benefits, up to a maximum of $4,466. The determination was based on $17,708.71 Kirschner earned as a server at Famous Anthony’s (Oak Grove) over four previous quarters.
The VEC official who issued that conclusion was noted by a code number, “Deputy VEC651.” The document also sports this “IMPORTANT MESSAGE:” ... “Beginning with the benefit week ending 04/04/20 through 07/25/20 you will receive an extra $600 per week paid, under the CARES Act 2020.” ... Above that message, handwritten neatly in purple ink, are notes Kirschner scribbled on the document. ... “Fri June 5 *Back To Work*,” she wrote, along with scheduled shifts through June 17.
Before Kirschner returned to work June 5 she filed weekly jobless claims with the VEC by telephone. At the end of her first week back on the job, she resigned so she could care for her 92-year-old dad, Del Kirschner. ... Kirschner realizes she’s probably ineligible for unemployment benefits dating from the time she voluntarily left her job. But what March 18 to June 4, the period she was involuntarily furloughed? Despite that March 27 letter, she hasn’t seen a penny of benefits from then. ... By my calculations, she’s due 11 weeks worth of Virginia unemployment benefits, which totals $2,233, plus at least eight weeks of federal benefits totaling $4,800. It adds up to $7,033, a not insignificant sum for just about anybody.
Kirschner has called and called and called the VEC. Its telephone reps have transferred her calls to other reps, leaving her without answers. She personally visited the VEC offices in Roanoke County. But that didn’t do any good, either. ... A significant language barrier may be causing part of the problem. Kirschner was born in Korea, where she and her siblings were orphaned when she was a toddler. When she was 15, Del Kirschner and his wife adopted them.
{snip}
Dan Casey knows a little bit about a lot of things but not a heck of a lot about most things. That doesn't keep him from writing about them, however. So keep him honest!
Deanna Kirchner is among tens of thousands of Virginia workers whose unemployment claims have been hung up for one reason or another at the Virginia Employment Commission. Meanwhile, that agency has been besieged with both unemployment claims and appeals, and there's a months-long backlog of the latter.
Dan Casey 18 hrs ago
Deanna Kirschner still has the document — a “determination of benefits” letter, dated March 27, issued by the Virginia Employment Commission. It arrived after the restaurant where she waited tables for 18 years furloughed the server during a temporary, pandemic-caused closure this past spring. ... The letter said Kirschner, 55, was eligible for $203 per week in unemployment benefits, up to a maximum of $4,466. The determination was based on $17,708.71 Kirschner earned as a server at Famous Anthony’s (Oak Grove) over four previous quarters.
The VEC official who issued that conclusion was noted by a code number, “Deputy VEC651.” The document also sports this “IMPORTANT MESSAGE:” ... “Beginning with the benefit week ending 04/04/20 through 07/25/20 you will receive an extra $600 per week paid, under the CARES Act 2020.” ... Above that message, handwritten neatly in purple ink, are notes Kirschner scribbled on the document. ... “Fri June 5 *Back To Work*,” she wrote, along with scheduled shifts through June 17.
Before Kirschner returned to work June 5 she filed weekly jobless claims with the VEC by telephone. At the end of her first week back on the job, she resigned so she could care for her 92-year-old dad, Del Kirschner. ... Kirschner realizes she’s probably ineligible for unemployment benefits dating from the time she voluntarily left her job. But what March 18 to June 4, the period she was involuntarily furloughed? Despite that March 27 letter, she hasn’t seen a penny of benefits from then. ... By my calculations, she’s due 11 weeks worth of Virginia unemployment benefits, which totals $2,233, plus at least eight weeks of federal benefits totaling $4,800. It adds up to $7,033, a not insignificant sum for just about anybody.
Kirschner has called and called and called the VEC. Its telephone reps have transferred her calls to other reps, leaving her without answers. She personally visited the VEC offices in Roanoke County. But that didn’t do any good, either. ... A significant language barrier may be causing part of the problem. Kirschner was born in Korea, where she and her siblings were orphaned when she was a toddler. When she was 15, Del Kirschner and his wife adopted them.
{snip}
Dan Casey knows a little bit about a lot of things but not a heck of a lot about most things. That doesn't keep him from writing about them, however. So keep him honest!