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COLORADO SPRINGS, COLO. -- The Colorado Springs unemployment rate is the highest it's been since 2000.

Now the Department of Labor and Employment can't keep up with all the calls for unemployment benefits.

The Springs unemployment rate for December was at 7 percent.

The Colorado Department of Labor is now getting about 5,000 calls a day. Before the recession hit, the office averaged less than 1,000.

FOX21 News called both the Denver metro line, (303) 318-8000, and the 800 number, (800) 388-5515. It took 30 minutes to get through and have an automated message put the call on hold.

Many in Colorado are having similar experiences.

"I have been calling this number for three days straight. No less than 500 times a day," said Eric Miller, who had yet to get through.

"That's frustrating for us, but we understand it's more frustrating to the claimant," said Bill Thoennes, Department of Labor and Employment spokesperson.

The department can only handle 2,0000 calls a day, less than half the amount it's receiving.

Those who want to file a claiim can avoid the wait by doing it online at www.coworkforce.com. But, you'll need to pick up the phone if you have questions or lose your PIN (personal identification number), a #1 reason people have been calling.

"We're taking steps right now to make sure the PIN can be reapplied for and people can get a new PIN issued online," Thoennes said.

Many panicked or frustrated El Paso and Teller County residents have been calling the Pikes Peak Workforce Center but that won't work.

"A lot of people relate us to unemployment, which we are not," said Terence Jackson.

Thoennes said getting through will get easier. The department is hiring 30 additional staff members.

"We're also authorizing overtime so we're not shutting the systems off as we have in the past," Thoennes said.

It will likely be late February or early March before those staff members are actually taking calls and the department can catch up.

Once someone has filed for unemployment, it typically takes four to five weeks to process a claim. That step has largely not been affected by the influx in claims.

Click on the camera icon to view this story as it aired on FOX21 News.