The 80th anniversary of unemployment insurance (UI) passed with little notice in August. Passage of time alone does not explain UI’s sad, sorry state. Instead, deliberate limitations were built into the program’s beginnings while others have been adopted during its history. Studies show that women and part-time and low-wage workers do not draw UI benefits at rates consistent with their numbers within the ranks of jobless workers. In the second quarter (April, May, June 2015), nationally only 26 of every 100 jobless workers got UI benefits. This ratio is called the recipiency rate. Many states...