Senators Warren and Wyden seek details about Social Security Administration job transfers

In a joint letter to Social Security Commissioner Frank Bisignano, Senators Elizabeth Warren and Ron Wyden have raised concerns about the agency's recent decision to reassign field office employees to assist with handling calls to the 1-800 number service, starting in March 2020.

The senators demanded information about the decision, questioning its provenance and the impact on the SSA's remaining public performance metrics. They asserted that the reassigned employees are frontline customer service representatives who directly assist recipients visiting offices.

The senators have previously expressed concerns about the Trump administration's cuts to the SSA workforce. They claim that these cuts are disastrous and that further staffing reductions will degrade the SSA, making it harder for seniors to get their monthly Social Security check or address other problems with their benefits.

The senators accused Bisignano of using the reassignments to "cover up the mess" of his addition of AI assistants to the 1-800 number. In June, Senator Warren released an investigation showing that phone wait times on SSA's AI-driven 1-800 number average over 1.75 hours, despite SSA's claim of just 19.2 minutes.

Union officials assert that the reassignments degrade service delivery at field offices. They claim that the reassignment occurred despite purported gains in customer service metrics. The agency claims that the reassignments reflect new capabilities thanks to the new technology.

The "reassignment pilot program" aimed to increase the number of staff answering calls to the 1-800 number by 25%. However, the senators demanded detailed metrics about the teleservice centers' performance in the week prior to the reassignments.

The agency recently removed tranches of real-time performance data initially published by former Commissioner Martin O'Malley. Bisignano has been emphasizing automated service options on the Social Security Administration's website and through its 1-800 customer service number.

The senators' letter, addressed to Bisignano, also questioned the provenance of the agency's remaining public performance metrics regarding the reassignments. They accused Bisignano of using the reassignments to "cover up the mess" of his addition of AI assistants to the 1-800 number.

The Social Security Commissioner, Frank Bisignano, has reassigned 1,000 field office employees to help answer calls to the agency's 1-800 number. The senators demanded information about the decision to reassign field office staff and detailed metrics about the teleservice centers' performance in the week prior to the reassignments.