Will low/zero earnings affect Social Security benefits with WEP due to state teacher pension?
Just turned 57 and planning for retirement. I've been receiving my teacher's pension for 7 years after teaching in California for 30 years. Since leaving teaching, I've only worked part-time at my local community center making around $4,800 annually. I'm considering stopping work completely next year. My question is about Social Security benefits at 62: Will having minimal or zero earnings these last few years before claiming significantly reduce my SS payment? I know I'll be hit with the Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP) because of my teacher's pension, but I'm wondering if these low-earning years are making things even worse. My SS earnings record already has a lot of zeros from my teaching years since we didn't pay into Social Security. Also, if anyone knows - does continuing to work part-time for even a small amount help my eventual benefit calculation at all? Or is it too little to matter at this point?
20 comments
Join the conversation
Ava Williams
Social Security uses ur best 35 years of earnings to calc benefits. so if u hav less than 35 yrs w/ earnings, they put in zeros for the missing yrs. but if u already hav a teacher pension u might not get much SS anyway bc of the WEP thing u mentioned.
0 coins
Zainab Mahmoud
•Thanks! So would it help at all if I kept working part-time for a few more years before claiming at 62? Or is the WEP reduction going to be so big that these small earnings won't make a difference?
0 coins
Raj Gupta
This happened to my sister! She taught in Texas for 25 years, gets a pension, then worked retail for a while before claiming SS. Her SS benefit ended up being so small it wasn't even worth the hassle. Only like $380/month after all the WEP reductions. The system is SO UNFAIR to teachers!!!
0 coins
Zainab Mahmoud
•Ugh, that's discouraging. I was hoping for at least something substantial from SS after all these years of working summer jobs and my post-teaching work. Did your sister try to appeal or anything?
0 coins
Lena Müller
Your Social Security benefit is calculated using your highest 35 years of earnings. If you have fewer than 35 years with earnings covered by Social Security, zeros are factored into your calculation. However, your situation is more complex due to the Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP). This will reduce your SS benefit because you receive a pension from employment where you didn't pay SS taxes. The good news: WEP has a maximum reduction based on your years of "substantial earnings" under Social Security. If you have 30+ years of substantial earnings under SS, WEP doesn't apply. With 20 years, the reduction is less severe. For 2025, "substantial earnings" means earning at least $31,275 in a year. Additional low-earning years ($4,800) won't substantially change your benefit amount if they're not replacing zeros or very low earnings years in your top 35. I suggest creating an account at my.ssa.gov to see your projected benefit with WEP already factored in. SSA also has a WEP calculator online.
0 coins
Zainab Mahmoud
•Thank you so much for the detailed explanation! This makes more sense now. I definitely don't have 30 years of substantial earnings under SS, so I'll still get hit with WEP. I'll check my SSA account to see the projection. One question - does the substantial earnings amount ($31,275) apply to all past years, or is it adjusted for inflation for older years?
0 coins
Lena Müller
The substantial earnings threshold is adjusted for inflation for past years. For example, in 1990 it was only about $9,525, and in 2000 it was around $14,175. SSA has a chart showing the substantial earnings amount for each year. When you view your earnings record on my.ssa.gov, you can compare your actual earnings to these thresholds to determine how many years of substantial earnings you have for WEP purposes.
0 coins
Zainab Mahmoud
•That's really helpful information! I'll definitely check that chart against my earnings history. It seems like I might have more qualifying years than I initially thought.
0 coins
TechNinja
I went through this EXACT situation!!! Taught for 26 years in Illinois, get my TRS pension, and thought my Social Security would be decent because I worked summers and before teaching. WRONG!!!! WEP knocked my benefit down to almost nothing - like $340/month when it should have been over $900!!! It's highway robbery what they do to teachers!!!! Called SSA 36 times over 2 months and NEVER got through to anyone who could explain WHY my benefit was so low. The whole system is broken!!!
0 coins
Keisha Thompson
•I had the same problem with calling SSA over and over again with no luck. I eventually used Claimyr (claimyr.com) to get through to a representative right away. They have this callback service where they basically wait on hold for you and connect you when an agent is available. Saved me hours of frustration! They have a video showing how it works: https://youtu.be/Z-BRbJw3puU When I finally got through, the rep explained my WEP calculation in detail. Still didn't make the reduction any less painful, but at least I understood exactly how they arrived at my benefit amount.
0 coins
Paolo Bianchi
I'd recommend continuing to work if possible. Here's why: 1. Social Security uses your highest 35 years of earnings. Any year with earnings, even low earnings, is better than a zero. 2. The WEP reduction is reduced if you have 21-29 years of "substantial earnings" under Social Security. Each additional year of substantial earnings reduces the WEP penalty. 3. Working until your Full Retirement Age (67 for you) rather than claiming at 62 would increase your benefit by approximately 30%, even after WEP. 4. If your pension is from one of the states with both a pension offset provision AND the federal WEP (like California), you're already facing a substantial reduction. Request a WEP calculation from SSA before deciding to stop working completely. In some cases, one more year of even modest earnings can make a difference if it gives you another year of "substantial earnings" for WEP calculation purposes.
0 coins
Zainab Mahmoud
•Thank you for the thorough breakdown. I hadn't considered waiting until FRA - the 30% increase sounds significant. I need to look at my earnings record more carefully to see where I stand with "substantial earnings" years.
0 coins
Yara Assad
My husbend got hit by WEP due to his fireman pension. We found out you can reduce the WEP impact if you have 30 years of "substantial covered earnings" under SS. maybe u can work a little longer and try to get more years? also if u want actual help dont bother calling SS, you'll wait forever and get disconnected!
0 coins
Zainab Mahmoud
•Thanks for the tip! I'll definitely look into how many substantial earnings years I have. And yeah, calling SS sounds like a nightmare based on everyone's experiences here.
0 coins
Ava Williams
ppl should know that if u hav low benefit from SS due to WEP but ur spouse has good SS earnings, sometimes the spousal benefit can be better than ur own WEP-reduced benefit. my friend was in this situation w/ teacher pension + low SS and got more by claiming on her husbands record
0 coins
Zainab Mahmoud
•That's interesting! My husband worked in the private sector his whole career and has solid SS earnings. Would the Government Pension Offset still reduce any spousal benefits I might qualify for? I've heard conflicting things about this.
0 coins
Lena Müller
Yes, the Government Pension Offset (GPO) would still apply to spousal benefits if you receive a pension from work not covered by Social Security. The GPO typically reduces spousal/widow(er) benefits by 2/3 of your government pension amount. For example, if your government pension is $3,000/month, your spousal benefits would be reduced by $2,000. If the spousal benefit would have been $1,500, you'd receive $0 after the GPO reduction ($1,500 - $2,000 = less than $0). This is separate from the WEP, which affects your own benefit based on your own work record. The GPO affects benefits based on someone else's work record.
0 coins
Zainab Mahmoud
•I see - that makes the situation clearer. With my teacher's pension being about $4,200/month, it sounds like any spousal benefits would be completely wiped out by the GPO. Looks like I need to focus on maximizing my own benefit, even with the WEP reduction.
0 coins
Raj Gupta
The whole WEP/GPO thing is just the government STEALING money from teachers and public servants who worked hard their whole lives!!! My aunt lost over $700/month because of this garbage. Called her congressman and everything but nothing changed. Complete scam!!!!
0 coins
Paolo Bianchi
•It's not actually "stealing" - it's adjusting benefits to account for the fact that some workers didn't pay into Social Security for portions of their career. The original Social Security benefit formula gives a higher percentage return to lower earners. Without WEP/GPO, people with non-covered pensions would appear to be "lower earners" in the SS system (because their substantial non-SS-covered earnings aren't counted) and would receive this higher percentage return inappropriately. That said, the implementation is imperfect and can feel very unfair, especially for those who have split careers or modest pensions. There are regular proposals in Congress to reform these provisions.
0 coins