Unemployment insurance benefit adjusted to reflect retirement allowance
Licciardello v Comm. of Labor, 255 AD2d 850
Marie Licciardello left her teaching position with the City of New York. She later began to receive payments from her pension fund at the rate of $250 per week. In addition, Licciardello was receiving unemployment insurance benefits at the rate of $300 per week.
However, Section 600.7 of the Labor Law provides that an unemployment insurance claimant’s benefit rate is to be reduced in cases where the employer has contributed to the employee’s pension fund.
The Unemployment Insurance Appeal Board held that Licciardello’s unemployment benefit rate was subject to reductions by the amount of 50% of her pension payments, reflecting her employer’s contribution of over 50% of the funding of her pension plan. In addition, the board said that Licciardello was liable for, and had to repay, $3,250 for the overpayment of benefits.
The board determined that the actuarial value of Licciardello’s pension was $138,000 and that her contributions were $33,000, about a quarter of the actuarial value of the pension.
The Appellate Division said that this constituted substantial evidence supporting the board’s ruling that “her employer contributed over half of the actuarial value of [Licciardello’s] pension, thereby triggering the statutory reduction in benefits imposed by the Board.”
NYPPL