jollystomper
Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
- Joined
- Apr 16, 2012
- Messages
- 6,210
One different angle to look at the spousal benefit issue...
Women are more likely to benefit from the spousal benefit as (a) they tend to be the marriage partner that lives the longest.
In the workplace, women over the years have not had the same opportunity for earnings as men have. In the recent years this of course has improved. But go back to when those currently 62 or over were entering workforce age, and society was different. Maybe some of those who were SAHM had no choice, or were underemployed (e.g. the cost of daycare and associated things needed for 2 working parents exceeded the lower income and made it worse financially for the family).
So, in one sense, spousal benefits are a partial compensation for the work and income challenges women faced back in the day.
So perhaps we pick a year where we deem opportunity for working for both men and women were equal, with near equal pay, and say any marriages after that year are not eligible for SS spousal benefits, as both spouses had equal opportunities for work and income.
Another angle might be "if you have no dependents at the time the earner with the larger lifetime income takes their SS, then no spousal benefits".
Just a couple of "Modest Proposals"...
Women are more likely to benefit from the spousal benefit as (a) they tend to be the marriage partner that lives the longest.
In the workplace, women over the years have not had the same opportunity for earnings as men have. In the recent years this of course has improved. But go back to when those currently 62 or over were entering workforce age, and society was different. Maybe some of those who were SAHM had no choice, or were underemployed (e.g. the cost of daycare and associated things needed for 2 working parents exceeded the lower income and made it worse financially for the family).
So, in one sense, spousal benefits are a partial compensation for the work and income challenges women faced back in the day.
So perhaps we pick a year where we deem opportunity for working for both men and women were equal, with near equal pay, and say any marriages after that year are not eligible for SS spousal benefits, as both spouses had equal opportunities for work and income.
Another angle might be "if you have no dependents at the time the earner with the larger lifetime income takes their SS, then no spousal benefits".
Just a couple of "Modest Proposals"...