I was laid off for 'lack of work' earlier this week. About a day or so later I ended up accepting an employment offer from a large corporation. However, the issue is, I cannot start this job for six or more months due to going through an extensive background check process (aka security clearance). During this time I am not receiving any payment from the corporation.

The employment offer letter I accepted states: "We recommend that you not resign from current employment, if applicable, until the background verification is complete. Failure to satisfactorily complete or an unsatisfactory outcome on any of the contingencies may result in withdrawal of this employment offer."

Given that my employment with this company is contingent on passing a background verification that is going to last roughly six months, and my current job laid me off - am I eligible to file for unemployment benefits or not?

For reference I am located in Pennsylvania.