The Waterbury Democrat., 1936-11-03

Boston, Mass, Nov. 3-Benefits received by the worker under the social security act will always be more than he has paid in, accord sng to c statement issued today by John Pearson, New England region al director for the social security board. His statement was as fol- lows:
 ''For t.::c man of thirty-five, earn sng $IOO a month, the contributions oyer thirty years time amount to 9eO0," Mir. Pearson said. IT this man then lives out his normal life expectancy, his benefits will amount to s3,OO0, or more than six times what he pays.
 "For a man of sixty, who pays in for five years before he retires, the total tax is $72-in return for which he gets $2,5O0, if he lives out his normal expectancy-or more than thirty-four times the amount he was paying all these years. Where else could he get such returns on his investmentp . sOr take another case. A girl Of 10 works as a stenographer in business tffice for 10 years at SIS a week, or $936 year. Then she mar ries and settles down at home. She never works for wages or salary again. When she is 65, she will be- gin to receive regular monthly checks of $20.30, which will come to her as long as she lives. II she should die at any time after she stops work, and before she receives any payments, her family would get BIZ per cent of her 10 years earn ines. or $327.el. If she has received any payments, her family will re- ceive that much less.
 My purpose Is to give the truth about this law, especially those parts of 1t which you have heard so grossly misrepresented-1 mean the old-age benefits provisions.
 old Age Benefits
 sThe old-age benefits provisions are best understood if we compare them to insurance. They apply to wage and salary earners who are now young or middle-aged-men and women who work in industry, in business offices, in commercial enterprises of all kinds-about 26,- 100000 workers in all. Many em- ployers regard this old-age bene- fits plan as good business from their own standpoint, as well as that of their employe. Those employers are helping to get the plan launched.
 Let me give you some concrete examples of the true meaning of the act to those of you who work for wages or salary in the employ ments covered.
 "First, what are the benefits the workers will receive? What will be the amounts of the monthly checks that go to them from the United States treasury after they are 65 years old and no longer at work?
 "The size of those checks will de- pend entirely upon how much the worker earns in wages or salary from his industrial or business em- ployment between January 1887, and his 65th birthday. A man or woman who gets good pay, and has a steady job most of his or her life can get as much as $85 month for life after 65. The least any worker can get who comes under these provisions at all is $10 Q month.
 Man of 35
 For an average example, take man of 35 who is making $25 8 week. TIe has 30 years ahead of him before he is 65. If he works all that time and makes an average of $25 week or 1900 a year, his check when he is 65 years old and retires will be S45 a month for the rest of his life. If he makes $50 week or $2,600 a year, he will get $63.75 month for the rest of his life after age 65. If he does not retire at 65, he will be- gin to get his checks when he does retire.
 .rs"But suppose he is about 55 years old now and has 10 years to work before he is 65. Suppose he makes only $l5 a week on the average. When he stops work at age 65, he will get a check for $l9 each month for the rest of his life. If he makes S25 . week for ten years, he will get a little over $23 month from the government as long as he lives af- ter his 65th birthday.
 < Tn other words, every worker