Starting on Monday, 18 January, the Social Insurance Board’s customer service department will be located in the former Tartu County Government Office Building, at the address Pepleri 35. With the move into the new building, the Board’s staff, who used to be spread out at several different addresses, are now located in one place. More than 100 people work at the Board’s Tartu office.
The Tartu office ranks second behind the Tallinn office in terms of size, both in the number of employees and visits by clients. Important criteria when planning an updated and modern office were that it be accessible to clients and that the working environment meet the needs of the Board’s own staff.
Mare Sillaots, Customer Service Manager for the Social Insurance Board’s Southern District, notes that more people visit customer service department in Tartu at the beginning of the month. ‘If we usually serve 50–120 people per day, at the beginning of the month the number of visitors reaches up to 160 people per day.’ She adds that the move to a new building has been expected for some time and people’s initial impressions have been very positive.
Special solutions have been used in the new building, in order to make it accessible to people with special needs. For the visually impaired, there is a braille building directory and tactile floor maps, additional visual solutions have been created for the visually impaired and hearing loops have been installed. Moving about in the customer service department using a wheelchair or other technical aid is also convenient.
The opening hours will also remain the same at the new location. Reception of clients will take place: Mon 8.30–18.00; Tue, Wed, Thu 8.30–16.30; Fri 8.30–13.00.