The state Department of Labor continues to have trouble with high call volume despite efforts to improve customer service at unemployment centers.

The department has made a number of changes, including staying open on weekends, hiring extra staff and working extended hours. With unemployment rising to over 10 percent, the efforts to improve customer service still have a ways to go.

Four attempts by News 12 New Jersey to call the Cumberland-based South Jersey unemployment center all went unsuccessful. Other centers based out of Freehold and Union City were easier to get through, but offered waits of up to an hour to actually speak with an operator.

A spokesperson for the Department of Labor says the average wait time has fallen from 45 minutes in December to 26 minutes now. She advises calling later in the week, later in the day and on weekends to avoid its busiest hours.