UIF - Retrenchment - Almost 12 months and still waiting

Why is there such a delay in paying out UIF claims after retrenchment? By law the employee / employer are obligated to pay contributions to the fund, yet when a claim is submitted for UIF there is no assistance? I registered online for UIF on 15 October 2020 and have yet to receive any payment. After contacting the UIF department on numerous occasions I still get the same response which is to call back later same day, and this just goes on and on repeatedly without any further feedback or assistance.

I am not claiming for a special grant (no UIF contributions required) but have been contributing to the UIF fund throughout my entire working career, and now unable to claim after 20 years with the same employer.

nobody every replies to emails, even though a promised return call from a 'supervisor' or accessor - what is going on?