CHARLOTTE, N.C. — As more than 325,000 people out of work in North Carolina continue to wait for their unemployment benefits, federal data show North Carolina ranked worst in the country for fulfilling timely unemployment claims before the COVID-19 pandemic and still remains at the bottom today.
The North Carolina Division of Employment Security tells claimants if there are no issues, "people typically receive payment within about 14 days of filing their initial claim."
However, United States Department of Labor Unemployment Insurance Performance Management data show North Carolina scored the lowest rating for first payment time-lapse 14/21 days in the country at the end of 2019 and for the first three months of 2020.
Even as the state slightly improved its rating in the first quarter of 2020, in both cases, the state's ratings are well below the national average.
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