Unemployment compensation is money that some people receive from the state, usually for a limited time afterlosing a job, when they do not have a job and are unable to find one.
[US]
He has to get by on unemployment compensation.
unemployment compensation in British English
noun
(in the US) payment by a governmental agency to unemployed people
unemployment compensation in American English
payment, as by a state government from social security funds, of a certain amount of money to a qualified unemployed person, usually at regular intervals and over a fixed period of time