unemployment/pension survival

[biggerthangs]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? Va. I was let go from my job of 11 years due to my manager not liking me. So now I think I was approved for unemployment after my fact finding hearing. Before hand in a panic of not being able to wake up every morning to go to work and take care of bills and my daughter I withdrew my pension just incase the unemployment didn't go through. My question is its has been a month since I was fired they finally approved me and my pension just hit my account. Will I still get the back pay and will it cancel my intelligibility for my U.I.?
Also I put it into an invest checking does that make a difference or not? I can still access the money but I invest some of it...

 

[commentator]

I assume you are talking about cashing in your 401K. You're not old enough to begin drawing a monthly retirement pension, are you? You are meaning that you cashed in your retirement account, not that you signed up for your retirement "pension" to receive monthly, right?

Unemployment benefits are NOT needs related. When they took your claim, nobody asked about your income, no one was interested in whether you had a big bunch of money in the bank, or a spouse who works and makes big bucks. Unemployment insurance is that, insurance. It is paid if you qualify for it by being out of work through no fault of your own. It only lasts for a short time, regardless of your situation. It does not depend on whether or not you need it to survive. If you are qualified, you can be a millionaire and still draw it, and no one looks at your bank accounts.

However, if you draw a PENSION, a pension that you are drawing out monthly and that is contributed to by your employer, as opposed to taking out your retirement account from your former employer, that can affect your eligibility for unemployment and that needs to be discussed with them and you need to tell them about it.

Chances are from what I am hearing here that what you have done will not affect your unemployment in the least, but call them and talk to someone, let them tell you specifically that it will or will not affect your claim. DO NOT just assume anything. Get hold of them, and discuss it with someone. In the meantime, keep certifying. No, it doesn't make any difference what you do with the money, as far as putting it here or there. As I stated, it has nothing to do with how much money you have in your bank account whether or not you qualify for unemployment.

 

[Chyvan]

Please do yourself a favor and consider rolling it over into an IRA. There still may be about 4 weeks for you to do this.

You worked practically the whole year, and you'll pay your highest marginal tax rate on the withdrawal, and you'll have a whopping tax bill come April. If you roll it over, and still need the money come January 1, and you're out of work for an extended period of time in 2016, you can really minimize the tax bite.