Social Security for State and Local Government Employees

An estimated 6.5 million state and local government employees do not participate in Social Security. In some states, virtually no public employees are in Social Security. Nationwide, many school teachers and others at fire/police/EMS are excluded. In order to plan for the future, these public servants need to know how their total retirement benefits are impacted. In addition to being out of the Social Security system for as long as thirty years, the affected workers will have the Social Security benefits that they earned from private sector jobs calculated using modified formulas that take into account their public service careers. These special provisions are surrounded by confusion, suspicion, and in some cases, anger on the part of public employees. But it doesn't have to be that way. Be prepared to learn all you need to know about how this works. In the end, you will be your own expert on this vital subject. 'Social Security for State and Local Government Employees' examines why some workers are not covered by Social Security at their government or education jobs, covers the basics of Social Security, reviews two key federal rules that impact workers who earn pensions from work outside of Social Security coverage, reinforces the reader's knowledge through a discussion of commonplace rumors about the subject and concludes with a wrap-up Q&A.