Can you get unemployment and retirement at the same time in New York?
I'm 63 and was laid off from my job at a manufacturing plant last month. I've been working there for 22 years but wasn't planning to retire for another few years. My pension won't kick in until I'm 65, but I do have some early retirement options available through my employer. I'm wondering if I can collect unemployment benefits while also taking early retirement? I know I need to be available and able to work for unemployment, but I'm not sure how that works with retirement income. Has anyone dealt with this situation before? I really need the unemployment to bridge me until I can find another job or decide to take the early retirement package.
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Giovanni Ricci
This is actually a common situation that the NYS Department of Labor deals with regularly. You CAN collect unemployment while receiving retirement income, but there are some important rules. If you're receiving a pension from your last employer (the one you were laid off from), that pension amount gets deducted from your weekly unemployment benefit. So if your weekly UI benefit is $400 and your pension is $200/week, you'd only get $200 in unemployment. However, if the pension is from a DIFFERENT employer than where you were laid off, it doesn't affect your benefits at all.
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Amara Eze
•Thank you! That's really helpful. The early retirement would be from the same employer that laid me off, so sounds like it would reduce my benefits. I need to calculate if it's worth it or if I should just focus on job searching.
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NeonNomad
wait im confused about this... i thought if you retire you cant get unemployment? like doesnt retirement mean you dont want to work anymore?
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Giovanni Ricci
•Not necessarily! Retirement benefits and unemployment benefits serve different purposes. You can be receiving retirement income but still be willing and able to work. The key for unemployment is that you have to be actively seeking work and available to accept suitable employment.
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Fatima Al-Hashemi
I went through something similar two years ago when I got laid off at 61. The tricky part is proving to NYS Department of Labor that you're genuinely looking for work while also having retirement as an option. They'll ask about your job search activities and whether you're turning down jobs because you're planning to retire soon. Make sure you're documenting your job search properly and not being too picky about positions.
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Amara Eze
•Good point about the job search documentation. I've been applying to several positions already but haven't heard back yet. The job market seems tough for people our age.
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Dylan Mitchell
Just wanted to add that if you're having trouble reaching someone at NYS Department of Labor to get clarification on your specific situation, I had good luck using a service called Claimyr (claimyr.com) that helped me get through to an actual agent. They have a video demo at https://youtu.be/qyftW-mnTNI that shows how it works. Sometimes these pension/retirement questions are complex enough that you really need to talk to someone directly rather than trying to figure it out from the website.
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Amara Eze
•Thanks for the suggestion! I've been trying to call but keep getting the busy signal or getting disconnected. I'll check that out.
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Sofia Martinez
The system is so frustrating!! I'm dealing with something similar and every time I call NYS Department of Labor I get a different answer. One person told me I couldn't get both, another said I could but with deductions, and a third person said it depends on when I filed... I don't know what to believe anymore!
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Giovanni Ricci
•I understand the frustration, but the rules are actually pretty clear once you understand them. The confusion often comes from the different types of retirement income - pensions, 401k withdrawals, Social Security, etc. all have different rules for how they affect unemployment benefits.
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Dmitry Volkov
One thing to keep in mind is that if you do take early retirement, make sure you understand all the implications beyond just unemployment. Early retirement can affect your Social Security benefits later, your health insurance coverage, and other things. It might be worth talking to a financial advisor before making any big decisions.
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