HENDERSONVILLE, N.C. -- The manager of a state unemployment office was shot to death Friday by a man upset about his jobless benefits, and another worker was wounded when he rushed to his colleague's aid, authorities said.

Officials with the Employment Security Commission say the shooting happened after a conversation between a manager and a claimant escalated.

Manager Letch Beatty, 51, was killed, according to police and hospital officials. The employee who tried to help him, Ron Piercy, 57, was reported in good condition in a hospital emergency room.

David Clegg, deputy ESC chairman in Raleigh, said the man "was involved in a discussion with the local office manager that became very heated."

Clegg said the manager of the office was shot by the man. He says another ESC employee, Ron Piercy, was shot when he tried to help the manager.

WYFF-TV in Greenville, S.C., reported that a call to 911 was made shortly after Beatty was shot, and dispatchers were able to hear the second shooting over the phone as it happened.

Clegg said the shooter escaped initially, but Cichowski said that a man named William Case was arrested behind a nearby Wal-mart in connection with the shooting.

A hospital spokeswoman said Piercy was in good condition in the emergency room at Pardee Hospital, being treated for a gunshot wound.

The shooting occurred about 3:30 p.m. EST.