State Unemployment Insurance Sites

Unemployment insurance is a hybrid program between the federal government and state governments but administered at the state level. Below are links to the division or department for each state that administers unemployment benefits. The insurance pools are funded by both employers and employees. Both employers and employees must pay a percentage of the employee's pay to the state and federal unemployment insurance funds. The federal rates are set by Congress but the state rates are set at the state level by each state.

In order to qualify for unemployment, a worker must be unemployed by no fault of his/her own. If an employee is fired from a job for cause, generally no unemployment benefits can be drawn. At times, hearings will be held to determine eligibility when an employer claims a firing was for cause and the employee disputes this.

In addition to being unemployed from no fault of their own, employees must generally show that they are actively seeking employment. Most states have created agencies to help individuals drawing unemployment benefits find a new job.