NEWS

EXCLUSIVE: Iowa abandons its unemployment kiosk system

Jason Clayworth
jclayworth@dmreg.com

Iowa no longer services or tracks the more than 700 self-help computer kiosk locations it installed to replace dozens of unemployment offices Gov. Terry Branstad closed in 2011, state officials acknowledged this week.

The governor's administration promoted the kiosk system — known officially as "virtual access points" or VAP — as a way to expand resources to veterans and those seeking jobs through career and educational tools, without the added expense of staffed offices.

But now the kiosk system has been abandoned.

A website dedicated to Iowa's unemployment kiosk system has been deactivated.

It's unknown how many of the kiosks, which initially were placed in public places such as libraries and homeless shelters, remain dedicated to unemployment assistance, said Courtney Greene, a spokeswoman for Iowa Workforce Development.

Also gone is the program's special website that included a live chat and toll-free number that offered technical assistance to kiosk hosts.

The Iowa Workforce Development so far has been unable to say when the department discontinued the program. No public announcement was made, and board minutes do not reflect the issue was publicly discussed in the past two years.

Greene said improved technology that now allows Iowans to file for weekly unemployment claims by smartphone has made the kiosks less essential to its customer-service efforts.

The kiosks were put in place under former Workforce Development Director Teresa Wahlert, who retired in January 2015 after it became apparent that she would not win reconfirmation. Current director Beth Townsend took Wahlert's place.

The kiosk system was discontinued as part of the department's ongoing efficiency efforts and to streamline services, Greene said.

The department's budget from federal money has fallen by nearly $58.2 million in the last seven years, while the state's portion has fallen by an additional $4.8 million, she noted.

The department's budget is around $930 million, of which $20 million comes from state allocations. Much of the rest of the department's budget comes from the federal government.

Des Moines’ Corinthian Baptist Church was one of more than 700 unemployment kiosks sites, as pictured in 2012.

The department maintains 19 "IowaWorks" regional office centers across the state and 14 satellite offices. The department also provides assistance over the phone.

"We have really tried to enhance our website, so people can get the resources they need by going there," Greene said.

Branstad and other state officials contended in 2011 that the kiosk system would not only save the state $6.5 million a year but — more importantly — improve services.

At the time, state officials cited a four-month online tracking system showing that the kiosks had 17,854 to 20,479 unique monthly users and provided more than 74,500 services.

In 2012, the Register conducted a spot-check of dozens of the kiosks, finding that many didn't work and others were rarely used. The Branstad administration said those findings were coincidental.

A picture of the Ames unemployment office shortly before it closed in 2011.

The Register in 2012 also published an unreleased copy of a report from the U.S. Department of Labor that concluded the kiosks were limited to informational descriptions of services and did not aid self-help or staff-assisted services that an unemployed person might need.

The governor's office did not respond this week to questions about whether Branstad was aware of the abandoned kiosk system. Branstad spokesman Ben Hammes instead issued a three-sentence statement noting Iowa's 3.6 percent unemployment rate, which is the 10th-lowest in the nation.

The statement said Branstad is confident in Workforce Development's work and use of technology to provide services to rural areas.

"This is an old issue that dates back before Director Townsend," Hammes said as part of the response.

Iowa had flirted with closing unemployment offices for years. In this 2004 photo, for example, former Lt . Gov. Sally Pederson appeared at the Ames unemployment office where she announced Iowa had enough money to keep dozens of the offices open for at least two more months. The Ames office was ultimately closed by Gov. Terry Branstad and his administration in 2011. (Also pictured, Penny Dow, a 2004 employee of the Ames unemployment office.)

Ken Sagar, president of the Iowa Federation of Labor and an IWD board member, said he doesn't recall his board being informed that the kiosk system was being abandoned.

He said the kiosks were helpful despite being inferior to the work offered at the unemployment centers, where employees assisted people with interview skills and resumes.

Rural areas and people with limited computer skills were hurt most by the office closures and the defunct kiosks, Sagar contended.

"It's disappointing, to say the least," Sagar said. "It's like they're incrementally eating the apple a few bites at a time. Now they're at a point where they're not even taking care of the minimally tasked kiosks."