Will the Windfall Elimination Provision Reduce Social Security Benefits? Some Social Security Recipients May See Less in Retirement.

Countless Americans rely on Social Security benefits to survive – and even those who don’t rely on their benefits rightfully earned them.

For retired people, the system sounds simple. You work and pay in, you retire and collect. However, Social Security is a good bit more complicated than that. One component that many Americans my not completely understand is the Windfall Elimination Provision. 

The windfall elimination provision (WEP) reduces Social Security and disability benefits for certain retirees. While this may sound troubling to some retirees, it only applies to certain cases. Understanding who is affected by this provision is important when planning retirement. The WEP applies to those who receive a pension during retirement, in addition to their Social Security payments.

Furthermore, this pertains to pensions from non-covered jobs, or jobs that didn’t pay into FICA. Essentially, anyone who didn’t have Social Security taxes withheld from their paychecks and still receives a pension from that job should be prepared to see reduced Social Security benefits in retirement. For a more in-depth explanation of the WEP, check out this helpful article on Yahoo Finance here.

While the rules and procedures for Social Security can be complex, one thing is very simple to see. Many older Americans do not receive enough to live on after years of hard work. We believe that Americans should get what they earned. That is why we support a bill we call The Greatest Generation Benefits Act. Learn more about this important legislation here, and please take a moment to sign our petition.