Quick ReadSocial Security's special first-year rule lets laid-off workers collect full monthly benefits after their layoff, even if earlier wages exceeded the $24,480 annual limit. Filing Social Security at 62 instead of the full retirement age of 67 permanently cuts the monthly benefit by roughly 30%, making timing critical. Perfect Wave / Shutterstock.comA machinist in his early 60s who spent decades at the New Britain plant gets word of the closure, walks out with severance, and starts calculating Social Security. He earned a full salary through the first part of the year, so he assumes the annual earnings limit has already disqualified him from benefits until January. For workers close to retirement age, a midyear job loss opens a Social Security door most people have never heard of.