Montana News
News update for Friday, November 24, 2023
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PNS - Friday, November 24, 2023 - Black Friday and holiday shopping made in America; Small Business Saturday highlights survival and growth of entrepreneurs; Duck hunting faces environmental crossroads after spring SCOTUS ruling.
MT upgrades 'archaic' unemployment system
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By Mark Moran - Producer-Editor, Contact - News
Big Sky Connection - Montana has rolled out its upgraded system for filing unemployment claims, using pandemic relief funding. It was last updated more than 20 years ago. Perhaps ironically, unemployment insurance claims are at an all-time low in the state. Comments from Montana Commissioner of Labor & Industry Sarah Swanson.
Mark Moran
November 22, 2023 - Montana has upgraded its outdated online unemployment insurance system, which should allow the state to process unemployment claims more efficiently. The system had not been modernized in more than 20 years.
The last time Montana updated its online unemployment insurance system, people were still using dial-up modems on their home landlines and Windows 95 software to access the internet. The new system was over a year in the making.
Sarah Swanson, commissioner of Labor and Industry, said new features will make it easier for claimants to file for benefits and for employers to pay their unemployment taxes.
"It allows secure messaging," Swanson pointed out. "Instead of having to communicate via phone or 'snail mail' with our staff at Unemployment, claimants can now chat with them, directly and securely, right from that cell phone or that tablet. And it also has secure, electronic fact-finding."
Swanson noted it can save days or weeks clearing up reporting inconsistencies between a claimant and previous employer. Ironically, Montana's unemployment rate is historically low at just 2.3%, or about 13,000 people.
But Swanson cautioned numbers this low are not typical for Montana and expects an uptick based on past data.
"Historically, we've only had 27 months -- in the history of reporting in Montana -- where we've had unemployment under 3%," Swanson emphasized. "Interestingly enough, 25 of those 27 months have been the last 25 months."
Nearly a quarter-million claimant accounts were migrated into the new system, where Swanson added the average unemployment claim now takes only about 6.5 minutes to file.
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Following our democracy for Wednesday, November 22, 2023
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PNS - Wednesday, November 22, 2023 - Binance's CEO pleads guilty while the company faces additional penalties, advocates want GA lawmakers to be equitable in drawing new district maps and pro-Gaza groups call for a Thanksgiving day fast.
News update for Wednesday, November 22, 2023
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PNS - Wednesday, November 22, 2023 - Voters weigh in on the need to include growing groups in GA's redistricting; judge denies bid to revoke Trump co-defendant Harrison Floyd's bond in GA over social media posts; MN food shelves navigate record high demand.
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