State labor chief promises reform of beleaguered department

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Georgia Commissioner of Labor Bruce Thompson being sworn into office on Jan. 12, 2023. Thompson inherits a department bedeviled by charges that it was sluggish in releasing unemployment benefits during and after the COVID-19 pandemic.

The new head of the Georgia Department of Labor vowed Wednesday to overhaul the agency that was deluged with unemployment claims during the pandemic that resulted in a barrage of complaints over processing delays.

Newly elected Commissioner of Labor Bruce Thompson told members of the state House and Senate Appropriations committees that the Department of Labor has an image problem.

Thompson is begins his new job just two weeks after the Georgia Office of Inspector General reported nearly 300 state employees erroneously received unemployment benefits totaling $6.7 million during the last two pandemic years, averaging $23,700 per worker.

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