How unemployment insurance works in the States
In the midst of staggering unemployment and poverty during the United States’ Great Depression arose a New Deal and new legislation aimed at bolstering a battered and torn economy. The Social Security Act of 1935 created a safety net for Americans who needed financial assistance for unemployment, disability, retirement, and other life situations where they may find themselves without an income through no fault of their own.
In 1939, the Federal Unemployment Tax Act (FUTA) set the unemployment compensation-related provisions of the Social Security Act into motion, creating a joint state-federal program of unemployment insurance. According to the U.S. Department of Labor, FUTA authorizes the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) to collect a federal employer tax in order to fund state workfo...