NEW YORK, Dec. 13 (UPI) -- New York's welfare computers allegedly have programming errors, resulting in denial of food and other aid to battered immigrant women and children.
Lawyers dealing with such cases are filing a federal lawsuit that will also blame faulty staff training for the problem, the New York Times reported. They claim legal recourse is their last resort as city and state have failed to correct the problems.
The suit says data entry errors are forcing many women to choose between staying safe and feeding their families.
The problem results from case workers inadvertently omitting to enter "battered qualified alien" when a non-citizen applies for aid. The battered women and their children come under this category, and when that information is omitted, they get rejected, the report said.
A spokesman for New York City's Human Resources Administration said, "We have worked every day, including with groups like Legal Aid, to make our delivery of service even better. They've chosen to litigate this matter, so let them have their day in court."
