The Social Security Issue as Retirement Essay
COM/156
March 20, 2011
Instructor Karen Lawler
The Social Security Retirement Issue
Millions of Americans are concerned about whether or not their years of hard work and contributions into the Social Security fund will be in vain. Social Security was initially established in 1935 as a social insurance effort by the United States Government. (Social Security,”2010) This effort is funded by contributions from payroll taxes matched by employers known as the Federal Insurance Contributions Act (FICA). Contributions by employees are repeated as benefits in the form of death, retirement, survivorship and death pay. The Social Security program is a credit based system which is used to determine whether or not individuals qualify to collect money. The working class must earn 40 credits in order to qualify to receive Social Security payment which is equivalent to approximately 10 years of work. (“Going Broke,” 2010) Many Americans who have been taxed directly from their earnings worry that they will not be able to retire knowing that they can independently support themselves. This fear, which is harbored in the minds of many employees across the country, is the result of a depleting Social Security fund. The depletion of the fund has been caused by the overpopulated baby boomer generation, individuals choosing to retire early, the claim that it is a Ponzi or Pyramid Scheme, Social Security Number Theft and fraud in the acquisition and use of Benefits among other causes. (“Pyramid Scheme,” 2010) In this paper I will further elaborate on the many concerns and issues plaguing the Social Security fund and potential remedies to the necessary benefit. A baby boomer is an individual born post World War II in an era when there was a large production of offspring in the United States of America. The years that coincide with this generation are 1946 to 1964, where approximately seventy six million children were born in America. (“First Wave of
March 20, 2011
Instructor Karen Lawler
The Social Security Retirement Issue
Millions of Americans are concerned about whether or not their years of hard work and contributions into the Social Security fund will be in vain. Social Security was initially established in 1935 as a social insurance effort by the United States Government. (Social Security,”2010) This effort is funded by contributions from payroll taxes matched by employers known as the Federal Insurance Contributions Act (FICA). Contributions by employees are repeated as benefits in the form of death, retirement, survivorship and death pay. The Social Security program is a credit based system which is used to determine whether or not individuals qualify to collect money. The working class must earn 40 credits in order to qualify to receive Social Security payment which is equivalent to approximately 10 years of work. (“Going Broke,” 2010) Many Americans who have been taxed directly from their earnings worry that they will not be able to retire knowing that they can independently support themselves. This fear, which is harbored in the minds of many employees across the country, is the result of a depleting Social Security fund. The depletion of the fund has been caused by the overpopulated baby boomer generation, individuals choosing to retire early, the claim that it is a Ponzi or Pyramid Scheme, Social Security Number Theft and fraud in the acquisition and use of Benefits among other causes. (“Pyramid Scheme,” 2010) In this paper I will further elaborate on the many concerns and issues plaguing the Social Security fund and potential remedies to the necessary benefit. A baby boomer is an individual born post World War II in an era when there was a large production of offspring in the United States of America. The years that coincide with this generation are 1946 to 1964, where approximately seventy six million children were born in America. (“First Wave of