Summary
The Social Security Administration (SSA) moved some of its field office workers to answer calls on their main phone line to reduce long wait times. While this change has made phone service faster, it has also increased stress and workload for remaining staff, causing delays in other local services.
Key Facts
- The SSA reassigned about 4% of its field office workers to help with answering calls on the national 800 number.
- This reassignment aims to decrease wait times for callers by providing better phone service.
- The change has improved phone service, with average wait time dropping to 13 minutes.
- Local office workers report higher stress and more work due to fewer staff remaining to handle in-person services.
- Some claim specialists, essential for processing benefits like disabled children's payments, were reassigned to the phone line.
- Staffing issues are partly due to a shrinking workforce despite more people qualifying for benefits.
- Critics say the reassignment is a temporary fix that shifts problems around rather than solving them.
- The SSA recently removed some of the performance data it used to share publicly, making it hard to evaluate overall service improvements.
