The maximum rate of unemployment pay is approximately $450 per week. In some states, this isn’t even enough to cover groceries and rent for one week. However, in others, this is enough to help a person get by until their next job opportunity. In a video posted on TikTok, one Maryland resident showed what it was like to file for unemployment in 2025. They wrote, “Who is $430 a week feeding? Please let me know.” As usual, the internet had an opinion and some decent arguments for one side vs the other.
“$430 a week for doing nothing? Sounds like a pretty good deal to me,” the first comment on the video said. More than 150 people replied to this, saying things like, “That’s more than I make on a good week,” and “Still pretty good, combine that with food stamps and low-income insurance and you shouldn’t have to worry about much.”
Unemployment is a hot-button topic, and many people spoke passionately in favor of raising payouts. “$430 a week plus 6-8 weeks before even being approved,” one TikTok viewer said. Alternatively, another user called out the lack of empathy, saying, “These comments are absolutely why our society will never change.” Several viewers backed up this comment, adding, “I lost my job making $125k a year due to the tariffs. How is someone supposed to survive on this? It’s insane.”
Others blamed the state of the country, claiming their lives have been overturned since the new presidential term. “I’m in Florida. Trying to survive off of $275 a week with a wife and two kids. Shout out to Donald Trump for the worst possible America,” they said. Among several heated debates about the abuse of the system vs people genuinely needing help, some called out the hypocrisy of it all.
“People really think it’s a CHOICE that most people make to ‘live off the government,'” one TikTok user said. “I mean, JFC, the propaganda of unlimited unemployment and $44,000 a month EBT is just that! Meanwhile, people are totally fine with banks and Wall Street stealing DAILY. It’s wild.”
