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Charlotte woman gets unemployment after waiting weeks on North Carolina to approve claim

Linda Finkle waited weeks for the state to approve her unemployment insurance claim. After contacting WCNC Charlotte, she received her money the next day.

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — A Charlotte woman said she waited weeks before finally receiving her unemployment compensation from North Carolina.

Linda Finkle said she was growing tired of waiting on the Division of Employment Security (DES) to approve her unemployment. Finkle was frustrated and said she understood the state has been overwhelmed by the number of claims filed during the COVID-19 pandemic.

"They're behind and they are trying their best I am sure, but it was difficult to sit week after week and wait and have no idea what was going on," Finkle said. 

She said it was phone call after phone call, many emails and plenty of headaches when an unexpected issue sprang up. Issues happen, but it's cutting through all the red tape and trying to get a straight answer that drives so many people crazy when filing a claim. 

RELATED: Gov. Roy Cooper calls on legislative leaders to aid North Carolinians by expanding unemployment benefits

Here's how the unemployment process is supposed to work: After you file your claim for unemployment insurance, your last employer is given, by law, 10 days to response to DES about your claim. No payments will be sent until after this 10-day period, and when you check online, your claim may be identified as "pending" during this period. 

If there are no issues with your claim, it will take approximately 14 days from the time you file your claim to receive your first payment, unless there's a snag. Then it could be a much longer waiting period. 

RELATED: Only one out of seven DES employees are qualified to fix complicated claims

Growing frustrated with the wait, Finkle contacted WCNC Charlotte after seeing several "Where's The Money?" segments. 

"I watch the program and I see that you (Bill McGinty) get things done," Finkle said. "So I thought, 'I am going to try that and see if it helps, and so I emailed you, and the next day I got a phone call."

And that phone call was good news from DES. Finkle's problem was fixed and her unemployment money is now on the way. 

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