MA DUA: Endless phone loop frustration - Tips to reach a real person?

Congrats! Any tips on what finally worked for you?

honestly, i think i just got lucky. but i used the comma trick and called at exactly 10:03 AM. fingers crossed for everyone else!

Hearing success stories is encouraging. Thanks for sharing your experience!

What year is it, 1995? 📠 But for real, might be worth a shot at this point

I tried faxing and it worked pretty well actually. Just make sure to follow up with a phone call (if you can get through lol

I didn't think faxing was still a thing, but desperate times call for desperate measures, right?

That's brilliant! I'll definitely do that if I ever manage to speak to a human

You're the real MVP for this tip 🏆

This is such a practical tip. It relieves the stress of losing your spot in line.

Hang in there, OP! It's frustrating but don't give up. Have you tried the comma trick that @profile 9 mentioned?

You can file a complaint with the state labor board, but tbh I doubt it'll do much. The whole system is overwhelmed rn

Maybe try reaching out to local news stations? Sometimes they cover stories like these and it helps put pressure on the system.

Lol I'm down. We can start a whole tent city of frustrated unemployed people

Careful, they might just hire you to answer the phones 🤣

Sometimes drastic actions get the most attention. But remember to stay safe!

Lol for real. I've become an expert at phone Tetris 🤣

Maybe we should all learn coding instead and build a better system ourselves 🤔

Honestly, learning a new skill during this time sounds like a great idea. Turn the frustration into something productive!

The online portal is a joke. Half the time it's down for 'maintenance' 🙄

Try clearing your cache and cookies. Sometimes that helps with the errors.

I had to switch browsers to get it to work. Firefox worked better for me than Chrome did.

Omg yes! It's so irritating. I've got that tune stuck in my head 24/7 now

Plot twist: it's actually a form of psychological warfare to make us hang up 😂

It's almost like they're trying to calm us down, but it just makes it worse.

I hadn't thought of that. How do I find out who my local rep is?

Just google '[your state] find my representative'. They usually have contact forms on their websites. Good luck!

My local rep's office was surprisingly helpful when I contacted them. They managed to get my issue escalated pretty quickly.

For real tho 😂 Sometimes I wonder if there even are real people working there or if it's just a bunch of robots playing a cruel joke on us

Kafka? More like a Black Mirror episode 💀

It's definitely frustrating, but remember we're all in this together. Stay positive and keep trying!

Wait, seriously? That sounds too good to be true. Has anyone else tried this?

$20 just to talk to someone? That's ridiculous. The system is so broken 🤦‍♂️

I know it sounds crazy, but I was desperate and it actually worked for me. Saved me hours of frustration.

How long did you have to wait after using this service?

It took about 2 hours, but I didn't have to do anything. The service called me when an agent was on the line.

Wow, that's not bad at all. Might have to give it a try. Thanks for the tip!

I read mixed reviews on this service. Some people say it works great, while others had issues with billing. Just be sure to read the fine print if you decide to try it.

Preach! 🙌 It's like a full-time job just trying to get the benefits we're entitled to

Fr fr. My blood pressure has never been higher 📈

Stress management techniques like deep breathing or meditation might help while you're dealing with EDD.

Yeah, I've tried that. Set my alarm for 7:55 AM and everything. Still no luck 😞

Ugh, that sucks. Maybe try calling at different times throughout the day? Sometimes it's just luck of the draw.

I got through once at around 1 PM. It might be worth trying off-peak hours when fewer people might be calling.

This is gold! Thanks for sharing your wisdom 🙏

What's this comma trick you mentioned? How does it work exactly?

@profile 11 The comma trick is where you add commas in your phone's dialer after the main number. Each comma creates a 2-second pause. So you can set it up to automatically input menu options. For example: 18003005616,1,,,,,,,,,,,,,2,4 This would call, wait for the menu, press 1, wait, then press 2, then 4.

I tried the comma trick today, and it actually worked pretty well. Thanks for the tip! It definitely made navigating the menu easier.

It really feels that way sometimes! I heard staffing shortages are a big issue right now, which might be why it's so hard to get through.

Thanks for the encouragement! I hadn't thought about trying lunch hours - that's actually a really smart idea. The bluetooth headset tip is genius too, at least I could get some housework done while waiting on hold. It's so frustrating that we have to develop these strategies just to access basic services, but I appreciate you sharing what's worked for you!

This gives me so much hope! I'm going to try this exact combination tomorrow - the comma trick plus calling at 10:15 AM. I never thought about having my state rep submit an inquiry first, that's brilliant! It's so encouraging to hear success stories after all the frustration. Thanks for taking the time to share what worked for you! 🙏

Thank you so much for sharing these detailed tips! The idea about listening for changes in the hold music is really smart - I never would have thought of that. I'm definitely going to try calling on Tuesday or Wednesday at 10:12 AM with the comma trick. It's incredible how we've all become experts at gaming a system that should just work properly in the first place. Your success story gives me hope that persistence really does pay off. I'm saving all these strategies and will keep rotating through them until something works. Thanks for the encouragement! 🙏

Welcome to the club, Andre! It's honestly both heartbreaking and validating to see so many of us going through the same nightmare. You're definitely not alone in feeling like this is affecting your mental health - the stress of needing help but being unable to access it is real. I'm glad you found this community too, because the official channels sure aren't helping anyone right now. That combination strategy sounds solid - I'm rooting for you! And reaching out to your state rep was a smart move. Keep us posted on how it goes, and remember to be kind to yourself during this process. We're all figuring this out together! 💙