Mehtaj Ahmed
Women & the Law
IAS312801CWE
Spring 2012
Research Paper
Social Security was founded on the idea that those who work extensively and hard should not become impoverished due to retirement or disability, nor should their families suffer in the event of early death. As the nation’s income protection program, Social Security supports families, not just individuals. Children, youth, and grandfamilies (grandparents and other relatives raising children) increasingly rely on Social Security as a safeguard against poverty, however their voices are often overlooked. More than 6.5 million children in the United States receive part of their family income from Social Security. One thirds of the 50 million people who receive Social Security benefits today is younger than age 65. If Social Security didn’t exist, the older generations would stay in their positions even longer not allowing for the younger generations to take their places in the workforce.
I found in the research that young adults, whom have been hit the hardest by the economy, are more supportive towards Social Security, and think it should be guaranteed because employees pay taxes for it while employed. The days of where men had to continue to work to define themselves have ended. People want the freedom to retire and enjoy life after working 45 years. The issue is that if there is a end in retirement savings plans then people will have to stay in the workplace longer and their health and well being is at risk. People have fears about the future of Social Security, including the idea that people are living longer and we will run out of money to support them.
So where do the factor like race, class, or ethnicity and especially gender lie in the social secur...
... middle of paper ...
...rned income you will need to offset those costs. This adds up when you consider that the life expectancy of women is about five years longer than men. Combined with their greater resilience compared to men who succumb faster to chronic diseases, this results in (mostly single) women spending more old-age time getting in a savings-depleting, expensive long-term care service (such as in-home nursing care or in assisted living, rehabilitation and nursing facilities). Finally, even young women's health care is more expensive - as reflected in an average $25 per month higher premiums for individual health insurance. Accumulating adequate resources for longer lives and higher health-care expenses require substantial savings coupled with reasonably aggressive investing - both of which women have been doing even in the times of being a powerless housewife in middle-America.
We are all putting money into a pot, and some of us aren’t using the money or the resources that we end up helping out. There are a lot of programs that are out there to help support lower waged workers or people that can’t find jobs. Some of these programs are food stamps, medicare, and lower income housing. Everyone helps pay for these things, but there are only a certain amount of people that can use them. If you make a certain amount of money and it is too high, then you don’t qualify for them, even though maybe it isn’t high enough to live comfortably. Retirement may not come as easy for the younger generation because of the fact that people are using the social security, and we may not have the amount that we need when we retire. How our society is set up, you almost get more taken away the harder you work, and for the ones that don’t make as much, get all of the
...of skin, language and social status. Class affects social status in the society but people should treat each other equally.
In America’s early days before the kickoff of industry, there was little need for retirement savings for a few key reasons. First of all, people were dying at a much earlier age; most people didn’t live past 38, whereas in 1900, 60 years of age was common for about 40 percent of the population and 15 percent experienced 80 years of life. Another reason for the irrelevance of social security in the 19th century and earlier was that people were usually living rurally on farms with extended families to take care of them. Furthermore, the Civil War also didn’t allow the government much economic room to consider providing a service such as social security. However, after the Civil War, pensions were a form of social security for civil war veterans that carried into their retirement. Unfortunately these pensions provided support for only a very small portion of the population; not even one percent of Americans received these pensions. Despite a much lower need for social security in the 18th ...
Social security was designed to assist constituents during financial hardship. The program insured non-Negroes who needed unemployment compensation, met retirement age requirements, or child welfare prevention programs. Despite its forward objective, critics’ perception of the social security program was depicted as legal thievery. M.A.’s candid retort to the government’s evasive program was simply to rape the pocket’s of the people. M.A. as well as others primarily prepared for retirement or a rainy day from stock returns. Contrarily, the social security program stimulated other economic restructures, which included limited full-time workers. The shift in the economy and Roosevelt’s failed promises created a wedge between the people and the government. For instance, Mrs. OM voices her views of President Roosevelt’s campaign as a misleading trick. She further explained
The original intention for creating social security was to act as a safety net for retirees, but as time past, there seems to be a great deal of economic issues relating to the program. Social security was created to help benefit retired workers, spouse and children of deceased workers, as well as workers who have become disabled before retirement. This insurance program provides retirees with a steady income once they retire. President Roosevelt signed the program into law on August 14,1935. Since then, social security has been beneficial for many workers and retirees. In fact, social security has become the main source of income for many retirees.
(Transition: So let me start by discussing Social Security and why it is does not work)
...le to stop living in poverty when they grow old and to collect some portion of their income when they are working so they can have money when they are old. Other people were against the act because of people being dependent on government free check and they would not work to support themselves and their families. In order to stop this, the government has a fix amount of money to be given to people so they cannot be living in poverty and they can try to find a job so they can be able to support themselves and not by the government’s money. If it were not for the Social Security Act a lot of people who are over the age of 65 would be living in poverty. They would have a difficult in supporting themselves so it is important that Social Security to be continued in the future because one day we might need help by the government to support ourselves or are families.
The Social Security Act was enacted in 1935, and since then it has undergone numerous revisions and amendments. Today the act covers a wide range of benefit programs, including Medicare, unemployment compensation, and Supplemental Security Income. The major portion for which the Social Security Act has become known, however, is the Old Age, Survivors, and Disability Insurance program, or OASDI. While today the OASDI program is most frequently referred to as “Social Security,” it is only a thread in what has been called the “social safety net.” Therefore, throughout this paper, it should be understood that Social Security will be the term used to refer to all its encompassed programs as a group, as a matter of convenience.
Social Security is a system that was set up in 1935 after the Great depression to help people get through tough times. "Social Security is now used by nearly 44 million Americans"(policy.com). Only people who payed into social security are eligible to collect when they retire. Many people think that they receive the money they pay in but that is not total true. The money that you pay in is used for the people that are receiving it now. "In 1950 there were 16 workers for every beneficiary; today there are only three workers per beneficiary"(policy.com). There is more money going into social security then coming out now. The extra money goes into a trust to be used when it is needed. By the year 2032 those numbers are going to drop. By this time most baby boomers will be retired and collecting social security. This will put a big strain on the funds. There will be more money going out then coming in. And it will not take long to use all the money that is in the trust. By the year 2034 they will only be able to pay 75 percent of the beneficiaries. "The projected average monthly Social Security benefit in 2032 of about 1,100 (in 1998 dollars) would fall to about $800, and would drop further in later years. Average benefits for low-wage earners would drop from $670 to $480"(www.ssab). Theses cut would effect the people just starting to receive benefits and those who are already receiving benefits. And with each year these benefits will decrease. As these benefits continue to decrease "the percentage of aged people living in poverty would rise"(www.ssab).Most people believe this is happening because of the baby boomers generation. There will be more people taking from social security then giving in. By the time my generation is eliable to receive social security there may not be any money to give.
Despite the retirement income crisis, Social Security should be expanded, not reduced. In Arthur Delaney’s article on the Huffington Post, Senator Bernie Sanders stated, “With the middle class struggling and more people living in poverty than ever before, we cannot afford to make life even more difficult for seniors.” A push to adopt CPI-E, rather than a switch to a “chained” consumer price index that cuts retiree benefits, would m...
... other places in specific, and the social and demographic structure of the society as a whole.
Social Security is on the verge of taking care of the baby boomers generation. This means that it will be paying more benefits than taxes it receives. In lay-man’s terms it means it will be spending more money than it is making. I think that you should pay into your own private retirement account for you to reap the benefits in the future. Not for you to pay into a cluster of workers money for current elders to benefit from. You need to take care of your own future and not rely on other people’s responsibility. “…people began to think retirement funding as a right…and so…started saving less” (Klay & Steen). That being said, people of a certain age should be “grandfathered” into this meaning, people of the age of say 40, still get the normal social security retirement money but anyone younger must start abiding this new reform. If you get married, keep paying into your own unless your spouse is not working. If that is the case then pay the same amount BUT put half into your own and half into your spouses. If the other spouse is working however, they should pay into their own account and you into your own.
Social security, since instituted in 1935, has kept many elderly people from running below the poverty line (Hosansky). In 2015, the Social Security Administration predicted that the funds would be depleted by 2034 (Max). This poses a serious threat to the living situation of future generations when they retire. Our elderly, by today’s standards, enjoy a comfortable lifestyle. They are able to retire and still make over one thousand dollars a month. Some people also have private pensions which allow them to live even more comfortably. But with social security funds running out, we must ask the inevitable question. Is it worth having social security anymore? Social security should be kept. One must never fully rely on social security. In addition
What would privatized Social Security mean for Americans? Social Security is the government body of economic security for 318 million people of America -- retiree, disabled persons, and families of retired, disabled and deceased workers. About half of American people pay social security taxes and 15 % people collect monthly benefit. About one in four family receives income from Social Security.
In Paris on December 10th 1948; the United Nations General Assembly proclaimed our Universal Declaration of Human Rights. One of those rights being Article 22: The Right to Social Security. It states that as human beings we have the right to a affordable housing, childcare, enough money to live on and healthcare when we are ill or old.Yet there are over half a million people in the United States that are homeless as of 2016. This includes individuals who are “doubled up” or “couch surfing”. In Portland Oregon the cost of housing is too much for a person trying to survive on minimum wage. Because of this many families and individuals have lost their homes and end up living on the streets; which is proven to cause mental and physical disabilities.