COLUMBUS, Ohio (WTVN)--With hundreds of thousands of Ohioans filing for unemployment benefits in the last four weeks due to the coronavirus pandemic, the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services is implementing a new process to keep their system from being overwhelmed.
Officials announced a setup where claimants are asked to file for weekly unemployment claims on designated days, based on the first letter of their last name.
The system begins this Sunday, and beginning that day, filers with last names beginning with A through H are asked to file on Sundays, last names starting with I through P are asked to file on Mondays, and last names starting with Q through Z are asked to file on Tuesdays.
All others can apply any day Wednesday through Saturday.
Those seeking unemployment are also asked to set their preferred correspondence to "electronic" to get a faster result.
Ohioans can still submit initial claims for unemployment benefits on any day of the week.