In 1997, the department began yet another consolidation of offices. Blueprints for job training underwent another change with passage of the Federal Workforce Act of 1998, which repealed the Job Training Partnership Act, beginning July 1, 2000. In the year 2000, the use of the Job Centers and CareerLink offices was not overtaxed. Initiated with a pilot program in Scranton in November 1997, the system allows people to use toll-free lines to start new UC claims and make continuing claims without having to report to an office in person. The convenience of this method has made it popular with users.
Surveys show that four out of five customers prefer using the phone system.
The average time for a caller to be placed on hold is one minute, and the average duration of all calls is eight minutes. New claims take about fifteen minutes. Reflecting a tendency toward promoting economic development, these functions historically had been more the province of the Commerce Department. Secretary Johnny Butler, for example, traveled to South Africa on a trade mission, and the department established a Center for International Relations. The department created a Heritage Committee to develop a better appreciation for the agency's past.