MADISON, Wis. (CBS 58) -- The Department of Workforce Development (DWD) on Tuesday, Dec. 22, released unemployment data from March 15 to Dec. 19, 2020, revealing that 96.89% of the more than 8.87 million weekly Unemployment Insurance (UI) claims that have been filed since March 15, 2020 have been processed.

According to a news release from the DWD, although approximately 585,440 claimants have been paid over $4.62 billion since March 15, 2020, the Department continues to focus its efforts on reducing the wait time for outstanding claims related to the pandemic, especially ahead of its annual busy season.

Issue resolution is considered timely if completed within 21 days of the date the issue was detected. As of Friday, 22,100 claimants had been waiting for 21 days or more for their claim to be resolved.