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We quantify the employer’s role in unemployment insurance (UI) take-up. Employer effects on
claiming and appeals are substantial, and those effects are negatively correlated, consistent with appeals
deterring claims. Low-wage workers are less likely to claim and more likely to have their claims appealed
than median-wage workers. Employer effects help explain these income gradients, so equalizing
employer effects on claiming would increase the progressivity of UI. Finally, the main source of targeting
error in UI is that eligible workers do not claim.
