In the last three weeks the Pennsylvania Department of Labor and Industry says 1 million people have filed for unemployment, which is causing a delay in processing claims.

"What normally takes 5 to 7 days is now taking 2 to 3 weeks. So please be patient," said Director of the Unemployment Compensation Benefits Policy and Industry, Susan Dickinson.

A whopping 6.6 million people have filed for unemployment by the end of March 28, doubling claims from last week, according to the Department of Labor. Included in that list is Erie native Kimberly Hunter who has accepted a voluntary lay off from her job because of coronavirus.

"I was under a lot of pressure from my kids and grandkids to take the layoff. So with a lot of guilt and a lot of thinking I went ahead and took the voluntarily layoff," said Kimberly Hunter.

Like many Americans Kimberly Hunter still has to pay her bills and worries that this time period could spiral into something worse.

"My fear is I'm going to lose my house,” said Kimberly Hunter.

If you would like to know the status of your claim, visit https://www.uc.pa.gov/Pages/default.aspx