Democratic Women Of The Senate Unite Against Privatization Of Social Security

Democratic Women Of The Senate Unite Against Privatization Of Social Security

The Democratic women of the Senate spoke with one voice on Capitol Hill today to oppose the privatization of Social Security. The Senators took to the floor of the United States Senate this morning to present their case to the American people that privatization is a gamble we cannot afford to take.

Following the floor speeches, the Senators held a press conference to make the case on why President Bush's plan to privatize Social Security would hurt American families and disproportionately affect women, as it is women who tend to work for fewer years and in lower paying jobs that are less likely to have pensions.

"I am absolutely, emphatically and irrevocably opposed to the privatization of Social Security," said Senator Mikulski, the senior woman in the United States Senate. "It will hurt millions of American women. It will devastate American families. And it will ultimately have a dire impact on our economy. Women and families need to know that they can rely on a guaranteed, inflation-proof and lifelong benefit. They need a guaranteed benefit - not a guaranteed gamble."

At the press conference, the Senators unveiled a checklist of criteria that any Social Security proposal must meet in order to gain their support.

Does the Plan: 1. Preserve Social Security's guaranteed, lifetime, inflation-protected benefits? 2. Preserve Social Security's protections for workers when they are disabled, as well as when they retire, and for workers' spouses and children when workers are disabled, retire, or die? 3. Protect against impoverishment of women by maintaining Social Security's progressive benefit structure? 4. Strengthen the financing of the Social Security system while ensuring that women and other economically disadvantaged groups are protected to the greatest degree possible?

For almost 50% of all non-married women over 65 years old, Social Security is almost their entire income. Women are also less likely to get employer pensions. About 25% of women received an employer pension benefit in 2003, compared to 50% of men. And even for those women who get pensions, the average pension income is only half what men received ($6,000 vs. $12,000). In addition, 80% of those receiving Social Security survivor benefits are women.

In Maryland, 743,760 people rely on Social Security - 395,000 of them are women and 52,000 are children.

http://mikulski.senate.gov/record.cfm?id=231759