“Connecticut is among a handful of states that harm teachers by, financially penalizing them for working at non-teaching jobs. Connecticut teachers contribute to the teacher’s pension system and upon retirement collect those benefits. However, if at any point they work at other jobs and pay into the Social Security system, under current Federal law they will not be able to receive their full Social Security benefits. Additionally, these teachers are unable to collect any of the social security benefits of a deceased spouse. The system is wrong and the decisions that created the system go back almost 50 years,” said Senator Freedman.

“This is a terrible disincentive to those who decide that teaching would be a rewarding second career. What does this say to a young mother who wants to take a few years off from teaching to raise children? It removes the very protections that Social Security is designed to afford. What does this say to young people who are choosing their careers? This law has a negative impact on the future pool of teachers in our state,” she added.

Senator Freedman said she is hopeful that Congress will pass the recently reintroduced Social Security Fairness Act as it currently has 100 co-sponsors and is expected to pick up more.

“Congressman Shay’s backing on this legislation, recognizes the importance of this for Connecticut teachers and the need to give them the opportunity to participate in Social Security. After working as a teacher in two other states where I paid into both systems, I was appalled to learn that as a teacher in Connecticut, if I were to collect to my pension, I could not collect my Social security benefits. It is definitely time for Washington to give Connecticut teachers another bite at the apple, “said Senator Freedman.