Fight Penalties for Public Service

NEA Retired President, Jim Sproul

Hardly a week goes by that I don't get a letter or phone call that goes something like this:

I worked for years in the private sector, paying money into Social Security. Then I went into teaching to help kids. Now I'm finding out that, because I served public education and get a pension, my Social Security benefits have been cut! What can NEA do about these unfair Social Security laws that penalize education employees?

These callers and letter-writers are referring to the Government Pension Offset (GPO) and Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP)--two nasty provisions in Social Security law that NEA is battling hard to repeal. Since I worked and live in Kentucky, one of the 15 non-Social Security states where educators are most widely affected, I've heard way too many firsthand accounts of how GPO and WEP take money out of members' pockets, even pushing some under the poverty line. (See page 17 for details on the impact of GPO and WEP.)

Together, members of NEA and NEA-Retired are keeping the pressure on Congress to respect--not penalize--public service. On October 1, for example, 150 NEA members converged on the Capitol to press our message and persuade additional members of Congress to sign on to bills in the House and Senate that would repeal GPO and WEP. More than 6,000 others called or sent e-mails.

Many of the members living in the 15 non-Social Security states who understand how they're directly affected by GPO and WEP are speaking out on this unfair situation. But winning repeal is going to require all of the Association's members to support their colleagues. If you haven't done so, please take the time to learn more about GPO and WEP and ask your members of Congress to co-sponsor NEA-backed bills (see page 17 for details). Our retirement security is at stake.

Note--Have you considered becoming more involved in the political process? Ask your affiliate about opportunities to become a delegate to the national Republican and Democratic Party conventions in 2004.