New Social Security bill would lower retirement age to 60 for some workers

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Rep. Haley Stevens, D-Mich., on Wednesday introduced a new bill that would lower Social Security's full retirement age for workers in physically demanding jobs.
The bill, called the Blue Collar Social Security Fairness Act, would make it so eligible individuals would be able to claim full Social Security retirement benefits starting at age 60.
Currently, the earliest Social Security retirement age is 62, though beneficiaries receive reduced monthly checks for starting that soon. By waiting until full retirement age — that's 67 for individuals born in 1960 or later — they may receive 100% of the benefits they've earned. For each year an individual delays beyond full retirement age up to age 70, they stand to get an 8% benefit boost.
Yet for blue-collar workers, staying longer in physically demanding jobs in order to reach those age milestones may be difficult, according to Stevens' proposal.
"Michiganders who work with their hands shouldn't be forced to wait until their bodies give out to retire," Stevens said in a statement. "If we want to honor the dignity of work in this country, we need to lower the retirement age for physical laborers."
The lower eligibility age would apply to workers in jobs like construction, roofing, nursing and manufacturing. Under the terms of the bill, the Social Security Administration would be tasked with coming up with a full list of qualifying physically demanding occupations, which would be updated every three years.
The Bureau of Labor Statistics defines physically demanding jobs as those that require certain levels and durations of physical exertion, such as climbing, heavy lifting, pushing, pulling, standing or walking. The agency has reported that 39.1% of the civilian workforce work in physically demanding jobs.
Under the terms of the bill, workers would not need to work their entire careers in physically demanding jobs to earn credit towards early claiming. A weighted points system would give beneficiaries credit for the years they worked in qualifying jobs.
Individuals in physically demanding jobs would earn 0.5 points for each year worked from the ages of 18 to 34; one point for each year worked from the ages of 35 to 44; 1.5 points for years worked from the ages of 45 to 54; and two points for years worked above the age of 55 until an individual passes away.
To qualify for early retirement benefits at age 60, workers would need to have earned a total of 15 points or have 20 total years of physically demanding work throughout their careers.
The proposal comes as Social Security faces imminent depletion dates for the trust funds it relies on to help pay benefits. To prevent across-the-board benefit cuts, lawmakers may opt to shore up the program by increasing taxes, cutting benefits or a combination of both. Advocates have called for targeted benefit increases for vulnerable beneficiaries, particularly low-income Americans.
Individuals who have physically demanding jobs are at risk of exiting the workforce earlier than planned, which can interfere with their ability to have a secure retirement, according to 2022 research from the Schwartz Center for Economic Policy Analysis at The New School.
To be sure, it remains to be seen whether the proposal will gain traction in Congress.

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