Can I continue to collect unemployment if I have retired after being laid off from work?

by Larry
(New Jersey)

I was laid off and signed up for unemployment since then I have retired can i still continue to collect unemployment.



Hi Larry,

Well, I would say .. I have to ask you a question. By retired .. do you mean you started to draw SSI or a pension?

Being retired does not, in and of itself, make you not eligible for unemployment benefits.

But what might is if you live in a state that forces a person to seek "full-time work" .. or if you aren't looking for work at all .. then you would be in trouble if the UI dept. gets wind of you not complying.


If we are talking about employer contributed to reitirment money or Social Security retirement payments .. that is another subject and also a state specific issue.

Pensions and SSI money can have an effect on whether the amount you receive from unemployment is affected or adjusted. This very state specific and the USDOL chartbooks includes aggregated data for all fifty states so you can focus in on just the one that matters to you.

USDOL Unemployment Comparisons