In This Issue THE years have shown that one of the most reliable means of preventing improper benefit payments has been the more thorough questioning of the claimant at the time of the original determination of eligibility for benefits. Russell M. Chatfield tells how the Missouri agency is implementing this procedure following a pilot study conducted in St. Joseph last year. p. 3. IN post-WW II days, the Utah agency found that most improper applications for unemployment insurance benefits were made when claimants returned to full-time work after a long period of unemployment. Lee G. Burns describes the Utah "back-to-work" card, by which a claimant's return to work was speedily verified with the employer. p. 6. FOR many years the Connecticut agency had had a widely diversified program for post-audit selection. Then it suddenly discovered that claimants were actually "selecting themselves" by reporting late for scheduled interviews. Donald R. Staples tells how the latereporting card has proved an effective device for detecting overpayments. p. 9. WHEN quarterly wage reporting was discontinued in Ohio, cross-matching benefit payments with wage records to detect fraudulent claims for benefits was no longer possible. The new method adopted to fill this void is outlined by T. V. Yates of the Ohio BUC. p. 12. In accord with Bureau recommendations and as part of its regular operating procedure, the Michigan agency began a series of benefit payment surveys in early 1954 to analyze the extent to which improper unemployment insurance payments were being or had been made. Joseph F. Burns describes the surveys and some of the results to date. P. 14. In spite of all the "regular" methods it was already using to prevent and detect fraudulent claims for unemployment insurance, the Indiana agency felt something was missing in its procedure-data from noncovered employers. Thomas Bennett and Paul Roales tell about two sample surveys of such employers and their implications or similar surveys in the future. p. 19. BASED on the old Chinese saying that "one picture is worth several thousand words," two New England agencies embarked on programs to show claimants and the general public how their programs operated. Edward F. Barker of Massachusetts relates the philosophy behind the creation of a new poster series in that State's fraud prevention program on page 22. Eldon R. Buswell describes the New Hampshire mobile display of short statements and pictures of equipment used in checking claims on p. 24. BECAUSE of the extremely short duration of employment which leads to a higher turnover rate, controlling unemployment insurance benefit payments to longshoremen has been a special problem to States which have large port cities. Methods used in two areasPhiladelphia-Chester and Baltimoreare outlined by Joseph D. Ely and Stephen C. Cromwell. pp. 26 and 27. ERRONEOUS notions were certain to arise about the operation of any program which protects about 40 million workers and touches the lives of many more individuals. Philip Booth of the BES delineates seven "myths" which have grown up around the functioning of the UI program and refutes them with narrative and statistical data. p. 31. i VOL. 22 At press Employer Relations Conference DECEMBER 1955 No. 12 California; "Community Employment Planning, James A. Rork, Arizona; and "The Application of Industrial Services to Present Employment Problems," Harold Montross, New York. [Excerpts from the speeches by Messrs. Coffman and Montross appear on pages 45 and 46, respectively, of this issue.] time Help for Migrant Workers BUREAU of Employment Security staff members joined with State and regional representatives from regions VIII and X and the States of New York, Pennsylvania, and Illinois in Santa Monica, Calif., for a 3-day Employer Relations Conference, October 3 to 5. Robert C. Goodwin, BES Director, and Arthur W. Motley, Assistant Director in Charge of Employment Service, spoke at the opening meeting on the importance of the Employer Relations Program and the goals of the conference. The working sessions of the conference were conducted through eight panel discussions which were moderated by Glenn Brockway, Regional Director, and Tracy Murrell, Deputy Regional Director, of the two participating regions. Topics discussed and principal speakers at opening-day sessions were: "Current Hiring Practices in Industry and Their Effect on ES Promotional Efforts," Paul Little, California; and "The Application of Management Controls in Planning and Directing the Employer Relations Program," R. L. Coffman, Texas. Panel discussions held on Tuesday included: "Implications for the Employer Relations Program of Expanding Service to Professional and Skilled Applicants; Expanding Job Development," John Y. First, Pennsylvania; "Working Relationships with Unions and Employers Covered by Union Contracts," Stephen Mayo, New York; and "Maximum Utilization of Local Labor Supply Through 100 Percent Job Listing With the ES," Walter E. Parker, Illinois The three sessions held on Wednesday covered the following topics: "The Role of State Offices in the Employer Relations Program," Thomas C. Campbell, THE President's Committee on Migratory Labor recently approved 14 recommendations designed to meet the problems of America's 11⁄2 million migrant workers. The recommendations, prepared by subcommittees within five departments of government (Labor; Interior; Agriculture; Health, Education, and Welfare; and Housing and Home Finance Agency), deal with housing, transportation, education, and other fields. The vexing problems of the migrant worker have been discussed and studied for many years. It was not until President Eisenhower formed the present Committee that a program of joint action by various Federal agencies was instituted. In Memoriam MARTIN P. DURKIN, the first Secretary of Labor under President Eisenhower, died in Washington, D. C. on November 14 at the age of 61 after an illness of more than a year. Mr. Durkin headed the Labor Department for 7 months, resigning in September 1953 to return to his position as president of the United Association of Journeymen and Apprentices of the Plumbing and Pipefitting Industries. Mr. Durkin entered public service when he was appointed head of the Illinois Department of Labor in 1933, a position be held for 8 years. One of his principal accomplishments in that post was revitalizing the State Factory Inspection Bureau. Paying tribute to his predecessor, Secretary of Labor James P. Mitchell said: As his friend and as Secretary of Labor, I am saddened by the untimely death of Martin P. Durkin. He was a great American who served labor, his State, and his Nation with devotion and distinction. Martin Durkin dedicated his life to the service of mankind and earned the undying affection, admiration, and gratitude of his fellow men. The recommendations approved by the Committee deal with such matters as adequate and decent housing, the encouragement of organizations at the State level to work with migrant problems, a field program for maximum use of local community labor resources, and the extension of work opportunity for migrants in both agricultural and nonagricultural employment. The Committee approved a Transportation Code to be presented to the States with a recommendation for its adoption. In announcing the approval of this Code, Chairman James P. Mitchell of the Labor Department said, "This Code, if adopted by the States, will go far toward preventing the needless waste of life that has identified the route of the migrant for years. Every harvest brings another, more gruesome harvest of accidents and deaths along the highways deaths that can be prevented." In discussing the work of the Committee, Secretary Mitchell also said, "This program is the first really positive step taken toward a solution to the migrant question. This Committee is an attempt to focus the resources of government upon the problems of the migrants such as housing, transportation, and education. It is hoped that this will mark the beginning of a continuing program of accomplishment in the migrant's behalf." Helen Keller Honored HELEN KELLER, deaf and blind since very early childhood, was honored at the 40th anniversary luncheon of the American Foundation for Overseas Blind. Maj. Gen. Melvin J. Maas, USMCR Ret., Chairman of the President's Committee on Employment of the Physically Handicapped and himself sightless, presented a special award to the 75-year-old author and social worker for "her successful efforts to advance the employment and social betterment of millions of handicapped people throughout the world." The award, the first of its kind, was presented at the Foundation's anniversary celebration because of Miss Keller's association with that organization since 1919. She recently completed a world crusade under Foundation auspices, traveling 40,000 miles in 5 months to stimulate interest in the blind in Far Eastern nations. The award was in the form of an elaborate plaque, part of which is in braille. It was made by handicapped students at the Institute for the Crippled and Disabled, New York City. It cites Miss Keller "for a lifetime of service to humanity and for her example of courage, faith, and triumph over physical obstacles. She has magnificently demonstrated the indestructibility of the human spirit in her successful efforts to advance the employment and social betterment of millions of handicapped people throughout the world.” Chester W. Bowles, former U. S. Ambassador to India, was one of the featured speakers. He paid (Continued on page 48) Control of UI Operations.... S IN all social insurance programs, which vary considerably in law and in administration from A State to State, employment security agencies have recognized the need for measures to assure that unemployment insurance benefit payments are issued only when properly due under the applicable laws and regulations. Over the years, many different types of controls have been developed and installed to prevent erroneous payments to persons who, through misunderstanding or by intent, try to collect unemployment insurance benefits to which they are not entitled. In spite of these controls, some improper payments do occur and for this reason it is equally important to emphasize detection and recovery of monies improperly expended. No one State has used all the methods of prevention or detection described in the articles in this issue. But some of the methods included will be of interest to other States. Articles from page 3 through 34 describe various controls exercised in claimstaking operations while the articles from page 34 through 42 outline controls in tax operations. WHE Experience With Claimant Classification By RUSSELL M. CHATFIELD Chief of Programs, Unemployment Insurance Section THEN and what questions should be asked of claimants in the limited amount of time that is available to determine their entitlement to benefits is as old as the unemployment insurance program. After all these years of experience, we are still searching for the correct questions. The Missouri agency took a forward step in March 1954 when we began an experiment in our St. Joseph local office to identify claimants by groups. Each claimant was required to complete a questionnaire at the time of filing an initial or renewed claim and then assigned to one of three major groups according to individual characteristics. The A group consists of those about whom there is no question of availability or ability and who reasonably can be expected to want employment as soon as suitable work is available for them. The A group is subdivided as indicated below: A-1 Claims for partial unemployment A-2 Temporary layoffs not exceeding 5 weeks A-3 Claimants attached to last employer not less than 6 months and with not more than 8 weeks of unemployment preceding initial or renewed claim A-4 Seasonal unemployment with normal prospects for return to work. The B group consists of those who did not give sufficient information on their first contact with the office, or about whom a question-such as availability of transportation or domestic circumstances was raised when they completed their questionnaire. Such problems can be disposed of by one-time questioning on their next visit to the office, and the claimants can then be placed in Group A or Group C. Group C consists of those who, as a group, may from time to time raise questions of ability to work and availability for work. Its subdivisions are: |