Wait times for callers to reach a worker at the state Department of Social Services fell dramatically in June following changes meant to improve how the agency handles calls. On average, people calling the social service agency waited 17 minutes on hold to reach a worker — down from 87 minutes last July.
DSS call wait times
Posted inHealth
Still on hold: A solution for long DSS call-wait times
It took an average of 54 minutes for callers to reach a Department of Social Services worker by phone last month. That’s an improvement over February’s 70-minute average, and one of the lower average monthly wait times in the past year. But client advocates say it’s long past time things be improved in the phone system, which launched in July 2013 as part of a highly touted “modernization” initiative.
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DSS phone wait time drops (to 66 minutes)
Nearly two thirds of callers who wanted to speak to a worker at the state Department of Social Services hung up before getting through, but that, too, was an improvement over previous months. In September, 64 percent of callers who wanted to reach a worker hung up first, compared to 71 percent in August and 75 percent in July.
Posted inHealth
Need to reach a DSS worker? Can you hold for 78 minutes?
More than a year after the state Department of Social Services changed its phone system, people who rely on it say it remains unacceptably difficult to reach a worker. Last month, callers looking to speak to a person waited on hold an average of 78 minutes. And 71 percent hung up first.
Posted inHealth
DSS call center wait times drop, but two-thirds of callers still hanging up
Callers who wanted to talk to a Department of Social Services worker by phone last month had to wait an average of 39 minutes and 29 seconds to do so. That’s down from one hour and 13 minutes in February. Social service officials say that’s progress, but client advocates say another figure gives more cause for concern.