The State of Wisconsin’s Department of Workforce Development is facing the tough task of sorting through an unprecedented number of unemployment insurance claims in search of fraud. In addition to the training of new hires along with repurposed public employees from other agencies, DWD must also adjust to new guidance from the federal government related to the recently passed stimulus package. Emily Savard says most fraud detection techniques involve some form of cross-matching where records from multiple computer databases are compared.

Unemployment insurance claims statewide have come down slightly from the record pace at the beginning of the month, but are still running about 15 times the number of applications this week last year.

*Photo of Sturgeon Bay Job Center.