Some Connecticut residents say they're still waiting for unemployment funds despite state officials promising to speed up processing requests.

Denise Despres, of Milford, hasn't worked since March 10. The coronavirus pandemic put an end to her job as a nurse's aide taking care of an elderly woman in Madison.

Despres says she filed for unemployment with the state's Department of Labor right away.

"Well, now here we are, three months and I have not received a dime," she says.

Department of Labor officials say they're doing the best they can, but have seen the equivalent of four years’ worth of activity in 11 weeks.

Out of the 591,000 claims submitted, News 12 is told 566,000 have been processed. That leaves 25,000 people who are waiting for their unemployment benefits.

Despres says what's most frustrating is the lack of answers from state officials. She tells News 12 her emails haven't gotten responses.

"There's no one to contact. I've tried every number," she says. "Most numbers are just an automated message."

Department of Labor officials acknowledge there have been challenges but say they've shifted staff around to help with claims issues.

"Since our job centers were shut down, we lost our primary ability to service UI claimants," says Kurt Westby, the Connecticut labor commissioner. "We directed dozens of staff to answer phones and we've been training and deploying 60 new staffers to manage claimant needs."

The department also announced a new contact center is set to go live in mid-July to offer additional help.

For Despres, she says that help can't come soon enough.

"They need to be done sooner than July because there's a lot of people that are hurting," she says.