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Forced into retirement with a hill of beans
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by YankeeJim | August 9, 2010 at 06:01 am
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The issue of being forced from the labor market and forced into early retirement is just beginning to surface. The new “affected class” in America are older Americans who need and want to work, but can’t because 1) there is a job shortage, 2) they are discriminated against because of age.
Between a rock and a hard place, prices keep rising, incomes are fixed, benefits are threatened, confusion reigns rampant, and before there is panic, there is resentment.
While older Americans tend to be patriotic, watch what happens when they begin to realize they have been taken all of their lives and betrayed by their government. If this happens, there will be a political groundswell on the order of a volcano.
In the end, we all want our hill of beans. Some still want their 40 acres and a mule. That would make for many hills of beans.
“Forced to retire, some take Social Security early
By MATT SEDENSKY (AP) – 15 hours ago
MIAMI — Paul Skidmore's office is shuttered, his job gone, his 18-month job search fruitless and his unemployment benefits exhausted. So at 63, he plans to file this week for Social Security benefits, three years earlier than planned.
"All I want to do is work," said Skidmore, of Finksburg, Md., who was an insurance claims adjuster for 37 years before his company downsized and closed his office last year. "And nobody will hire me."
It is one of the most striking fallouts from the bad economy: Social Security is facing a rare shortfall this year as a wave of people like Skidmore opt to collect payments before their full retirement age. Adding to the strain on the trust are reduced tax collections sapped by the country's historic unemployment — still at 9.5 percent.
More people filed for Social Security in 2009 — 2.74 million — than any year in history, and there was a marked increase in the number receiving reduced benefits because they filed ahead of their full retirement age. The increase came as the full Social Security retirement age rose last year from 65 to 66.
Nearly 72 percent of men who filed opted for early benefits in 2009, up from 58 percent the previous year. More women also filed — 74.7 percent in 2009 compared with 64.2 percent the previous year.”
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at 06:05 on August 9th, 2010
Source: worldwidewords.org