Will non-covered employment show up on my Social Security earnings record or is it just zeros?

This is completely normal. Years you work in non-covered employment (jobs where you don't pay Social Security taxes) will always show as $0 on your Social Security earnings record, regardless of how much you actually earned. The SSA only tracks earnings that have Social Security taxes withheld because those are the only earnings that count toward your future benefit calculations. There's no mechanism to record non-covered earnings in the system.

my husband had the same thing from working at a railroad for 5 yrs. those earnings dont show. its normal

They DEFINITELY show as zeros and there's nothing you can do to change that. What you need to be worried about is WEP (Windfall Elimination Provision) which will reduce your SS benefits if you get a pension from non-covered employment. It can cut your benefit by up to 50% depending on how many years of substantial earnings you have under Social Security. Look into this NOW rather than being surprised later!!

To directly answer your question: yes, non-covered employment will show as $0 on your earnings record, and no, SSA cannot and will not change this to show your actual earnings. These records are specifically for tracking Social Security-covered earnings. Since you have 15 years of covered employment and are now in a position with a government pension, you should be aware of two important provisions: 1. Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP) - This may reduce your Social Security retirement benefit because you'll receive a pension from non-covered work. 2. Government Pension Offset (GPO) - This could affect any potential Social Security spousal or survivor benefits you might be eligible for. I recommend requesting a WEP calculation from SSA when you're closer to retirement age to understand exactly how your benefits will be affected.

Have u tried calling SSA directly? I spent THREE DAYS trying to get thru to someone on the phone about my earnings record but kept getting disconnected or wait times of 2+ hours. Super frustrating!

My brother went through this same thing with his university job that didn't pay into SS. The zeros are correct and there's nothing wrong with your record. Just keep all your pay stubs and W-2s from these years for your pension calculation later. That's what really matters for that work.

I wanted to add - while those zero years won't affect your eligibility for Social Security benefits (as long as you have 40 quarters/10 years of covered work elsewhere in your career), they can affect your benefit AMOUNT. Social Security calculates your benefit based on your highest 35 years of indexed earnings. If you don't have 35 years of covered employment, zeros will be used to fill in the missing years, which can lower your benefit calculation. Just something to be aware of for retirement planning.

I went through EXACTLY this when I retired last year. State university professor for 22 years (non-SS job) and 13 years in private sector (SS covered). They hit me with BOTH WEP and GPO. My SS retirement benefit got cut by almost $400/month because of WEP, and my wife can't even get spousal benefits from my record because of GPO. The whole system is RIGGED against public employees!!!