BTW, what do posters here generally feel about unemployment benefits? Should it be nonexistent? 6 months tops? A year but only with enough benefits to stay alive, with the condition that they are withdrawn if it is discovered they are not using these benefits for basic room and board purposes only, i.e. for beer, cigarettes, new phones, etc?
It shouldn't exist. If people want to eat and have a roof over their heads, they'll get a job somewhere.
I have very little problem with a safety net. Unemployment benefits should be very short term and with better monitoring of the recipients. It is not uncommon for people to receive benefits while ‘working under the table’ for cash.
Years ago, people used to have to bring a list of places they looked for work... each week... to the unemployment office. (Those lists were checked and verified, too.) If they weren't actively looking for work, they lost their benefits - as it should be.
6 months was also the limit. If they couldn't find something - anything - with a half a year, they weren't looking hard enough.
Unemployment is suppose to be a safety net. It's become another hammock like every other social program. Stop paying them with other peoples paychecks, and they'll find a job - any job - if they want to eat.