Unemployment benefits worth $794 billion given out during the pandemic

As the state-sanctioned unemployment benefits under the CARES Act end this week, we look at what has been given so far. The unemployment benefits were like a safety net for the jobless. The programs created under the CARES Act which came into existence in March 2020 provided benefits to a historic level.

Policies created under the CARES Act helped replace the paychecks of people who were laid off due to the pandemic. The policies which became law raised weekly benefits temporarily from $300 a week to $600 a week, doubling the average weekly benefits. It was even more celebrated because the CARES Act took into consideration self-employed and gig workers who were not allowed to avail the traditional state unemployment benefits.

The $794 billion included bonus payments, state unemployment insurance, pandemic unemployment assistance, pandemic emergency unemployment compensation and 

extended benefits.  

Source: CNBC