Get the Facts — Spread the Word
Share these critical fact sheets with your AFSCME
sisters, friends and family!
How much will privatization cost you?
Find out! Use the Accurate Benefits Calculator by the Center for Economic and Policy Research and Institute of Women's Policy Research.
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Facts about Women & Social Security
- Women are the majority of Social Security recipients, representing almost 60 percent of all recipients age 65 and older.
- Without Social Security, 65 percent of African American women, 61 percent of Hispanic women and 52 percent of white women over age 65 would live in poverty.
- For nearly one in four women aged 65 and older, Social Security is their only source of income.
- Almost 45% of all unmarried women and more than half of unmarried African American and Hispanic women age 65 and older get 90% or more of their retirement income from Social Security.
- Social Security is more than a retirement program. Nationally, 50% of Social Security beneficiaries receive all or part of their benefit either as a disabled worker, or as the survivor, spouse or child of a worker. Over 80% of these beneficiaries are women and children.
- Social Security's progressive benefit structure provides a higher percentage of pre-retirement earnings to workers who earn less. Because women have lower earnings on average than men, they benefit from this redistribution.
Facts about Women & Privatization
- Privatizing Social Security would cut guaranteed benefits by 30 percent even for workers who don't choose private accounts.
- Private accounts punish women who take time-off to care for children. Women who enter the labor force later in life, work for shorter periods of time or hold part-time jobs are worse off under privatization because they cannot build up adequate savings in their private accounts.
- Privatization would severely harm critical benefits women rely on including benefits that are fully protected from inflation, generous survivor and disability benefits and redistribution of benefits towards lower earners.
- Women stand to lose more than just their retirement security. One in 10 female Social Security recipients depend on its disability benefits. Nearly 4 million children receive Social Security benefits as dependents of deceased, disabled or retired workers.
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