by James
(Massachusetts)
I retired from the Postal Service in 2002 and, receive a pension based on my 34 years of service.
Two weeks after retiring I took a job teaching public school. I have worked full time for almost 6 years at this position.
I received a notice informing me my position will not be funded any longer because of budget cuts for the up coming year.
Since my services will no longer be required, I plan on applying for unemployment benefits.
My question is, will the amount of any benefits I am entitled to be reduced because of the pension check I receive from the government from my employment with the USPS?
Hi James,
Good, you’re thinking ahead.
The pension payment should not affect your unemployment benefits in Massachusetts because the employer it is coming from is no longer a base period employer to your claim for unemployment.
The resource I used that implies this is so, is found in the nonmonetary chartbook provided by the USDOL. There’s a number of chartbooks that compare some of the basic unemployment laws in an easy table format for each state.
You can find a link to all the comparison charts here.
My explanation is reliant on Table 5-21 It is what would lead me to conclude that if I lived in Massachusetts the Postal Service retirement pension would have no effect on your benefits received for the layoff from a public school district after six years of service because the USPS employment is much too far removed from the base period for your current claim.
The source cited above can be used to determine this question for any state. This like many issues varies from state to state, but the chartbook makes finding the answer, fairly simple.