vagabond

I'm not sure I understand your question about the payouts. In order to be eligible for unemployment, WA state (I'm sure other states are similar) requires you to have worked 680 hours of "covered employment." If you do not have 680 hours, you will not be eligible for benefits until you do. Once you get the 680 hours and found to be eligible, the unemployment office will know how much money you earned in the last few quarters. Based on some formula, it figures out your weekly benefit and how long it will last. In WA state, benefits go for 13 weeks and calculated by looking at your earnings in 4 of the last 5 quarters of earnings. The maximum in this state is a little less than $500, I think. So it could be lower if you made very little money.

In general, unemployment benefits are about 1/3 of what you used to make. It's not much, but something meant to help you pay the bills until you find another job.

I'd like to take this opportunity to mention where my expertise comes in. I have nothing to do with the Employment Security Department, but when a claim is denied (meaning the claimant "loses") or challenged (meaning the employer appealed the granting of benefits to claimant), I will examine the reasons and can help when it comes time to appear before an administrative law judge.