The Ely miner. [volume] (Ely, Minn.) 1895-1986, 1939-12-28
Changes Made In Social
Security Act

employment.
Example; Jim Blank, a factory worker,
receives $500 a month in wages from
1896 until the end of 1899, At that time
he reaches age IS and decides to retire
to get his monthly old-age insurance
benefits, beginning next year. Jim's
monthly benefit will amount to $25.75.
Here is how it is figured: 40 percent of
the first $50 of his average monthly
wages is $40. Add 10 percent of the
remaining $50, or S. That makes $25.
The law provides for an additional
per cent of this $25 for each year that
he was covered Q937, 1888 and 1880.
One percent Of $25 is Csc, and three
times Csc is 75c. So Jim's monthly
benefit will be $25.75.
Employment Covered
All employment except for certain
specifically excluded types of work are
covered under the old-age and survivors
insurance provisions of the Social Sc
curity Act. For instance, cooks, maids,
buffers, chauffers, and gardeners, who
are employed by private families are
not covered. If these same workers
should obtain jobs in hotels, restaur-
ants, service stations, or in other COM
mercial or industrial establishments,
they would be covered by this Federal
insurance system.
Jobs not covered are, in general, as
follows: agricultural labor; domestic
service; government work; work for
an educational, charitable, or religious
roads (this is covered by the Railroad
Retirement SYSTEM; work in the fish
ing industry; work as newsboy; GER
tain kinds of professional work; work
performed for a son, daughter, spouse,
or for parent if the child is under 81.
Must Be 65
In order to qualify for monthly old
age primary insurance benefits after
1899, a worker (a) must be 65 years old
or over; OBJ must have worked on a
job or jobs covered by the Social Sc
curity Act; and Co must have received
certain minimum amount of pay from
such jobs during certain periods of time
The amount of pay he must have
earned to qualify for benefits is $4,000
or more in each of certain number of
calendar quarters. The quarters in
which a worker earns $50 or more on
covered jobs are called quarters of
coverage," with the quarters beginning
January 1, April l, July l, october l.
A worker who has already reached
age IS or who will reach IS before the
first of July 1910, needs only six quar-
tiers of coverage in order to qualify for
monthly benefits. A middle-aged or
younger worker must have not less
than one quarter of coverage for each
two quarters elapsing after 1886 and
before the quarter in which he becomes
IS to qualify. An employee who &C
quireS 20 quarters of coverage is fully
insured for the rest of his life. Ex-
ample: A middle-aged mill employee
after working until the end of 1949
leaves the factory to work on a farm.
Beginning with the first of January
1887 (when the original old-age in
surance provision went into effect) and
counting four quarters in each year, it
is evident that 48 quarters elapse during
the IL years in which he worked in
employment covered by the act Even
assuming he was without work during
8 quarters of that time, he will still have
40 quarters of coverage and even though
he never works again in covered en-
ployment, he will be fully insured"
Benefits Begin Jan.
After January 1, 1910, when monthly
old-age and survivors insurance benefit
payments begin, the wife of an annuit-
ant may also receive monthly payments
if she is IS years old. Her monthly
payments will be one-half of her hus-
bands benefit. Example: Mr.. Brown,
now IS years old, retires in 1916 from
his job in mill and qualities for old
age insurance benefits. His wife is g.
years old This means that she must
wait about three years before she can
receive benefits. If the husbands bene-
fit amounts to $50 month, his wife
will receive SIS per month after she
reaches 65
In households where the wife as well
as the husband is an insured wage
Garner, she will receive, when she
reaches IS, her own old-age insurance
payment instead of the supplementary
benefit from her husbands claim. When
her benefit is less than the supplement
tary benefit provided in connection
with her husbands annuity, she will