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AUSTIN – The Texas Workforce Commission (TWC) warns Unemployment Insurance (UI) claimants to be aware of unscrupulous business operators who may try to charge a fee to file unemployment claims. Filing for benefits through TWC is and always has been free.

Claimants who sign on for so-called fee-for-filing scams could later discover unemployment claims were never filed on their behalf. They also may have given their Social Security numbers to someone they thought was a TWC employee.

TWC wants to ensure that no one is taken advantage of by someone posing as a TWC staff member or by unscrupulous business operators, particularly UI claimants who need every bit of their benefits during this difficult economic time.

UI claimants also are reminded that TWC unemployment staff never perform home visits. Claimants should only give personal information when filing for benefits online at www.texasworkforce.org or on the UI Tele-Center phone filing system.

Do not pay for a government service that is free.

The UI program, funded through employer taxes, provides temporary, partial-income replacement to workers who have lost their jobs through no fault of their own. TWC administers and oversees the collection of taxes from employers and the payment of UI benefits to qualified claimants.

To report possible fraud, call the TWC Fraud and Program Abuse Hotline at (800) 252-3642.

The Texas Workforce Commission is a state agency dedicated to helping Texas employers, workers and communities prosper economically. For details on TWC and the programs it offers in unison with its network of local workforce development boards, call (512) 463-8556 or visit www.texasworkforce.org.