In order to receive unemployment benefits, a person must have lost their job through no fault of their own; be able, available, and actively seeking work; and meet minimum earnings and/or working hours requirements (depending on which state they’re in) prior to becoming unemployed.
A lot of people are not typically eligible for UI, including self-employed people, contractors, gig workers, students and recent graduates, workers who left their jobs voluntarily or were fired with cause, undocumented immigrants, and many part-time workers.