The United States on Thursday restored jobless benefits to the long-term unemployed, after a long political fight that left more than 2 million people in the US without compensation after their regular, time-limited benefits had expired, dpa reported.
US President Barack Obama signed into law an extension - until the end of November - of unemployment benefits for workers who have been without a job for six months or longer.
The House of Representatives voted 272-152 earlier Thursday to approve the extension. The Senate passed the measure Wednesday night, breaking months of opposition by conservatives.
Democrats and Republicans had long been out at odds over the benefits, with conservatives saying they supported the extension but insisting that the measure be paid for with spending cuts elsewhere, instead of adding to an already skyrocketing deficit. The deadlock resulted in more than 2 million Americans losing their benefits at the end of May.
More than 8 million Americans were left without a job as a deep recession in the last two years pushed the unemployment rate above 10 per cent. The jobless is currently 9.5 per cent.