Turkey's unemployment benefit payments rose 35 percent in the first eight months of 2015 against the same period last year, according to data published Monday.Between January and August, 1.44 billion liras ($480 million) was paid out from the country's insurance fund, the government's employment agency İşKur said.According to İşKur, nearly 713,000 Turks applied for unemployment benefit over that period, a 24 percent rise on the same time last year.Turkish employers, employees and the state are required to make a compulsory contribution to the Unemployment Insurance Plan at rates dependent on the employee's gross salary.