Say ‘No’ to Social Security Cuts

(This article appeared in the November/December 2011 issue of The American Postal Worker magazine.)

Judy Beard, Director Retirees Department

As the fight to stop post office closures and protect jobs remain our top priority, the fight to protect Social Security continues. Three of the 12 members of the congressional “Super Committee” that has been assigned the task of reducing the federal deficit previously voted for a bill that would cut Social Security benefits by up to one-third by 2016. Their negative positions on Social Security don’t stop there. They would like to see the program privatized. Sen. Pat Toomey (R-PA) has called Social Security a “hoax.” Rep. Jeb Hensarling (R-TX), the Committee’s co-chair, has called Social Security, along with Medicare and Medicaid, “cruel Ponzi schemes.”

Social Security is also a hot topic in the race for a Republican presidential candidate. Texas Gov. Rick Perry has called Social Security a “Ponzi scheme,” and former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney has labeled it a “fraud.” Both support privatizing Social Security through the establishment of personal accounts and increasing the retirement age.

The facts are clear. Throughout 76 years of existence, Social Security has always paid benefits on schedule; has a $2.7 trillion surplus, and is fully able to pay benefits for the next 25 years (after which it can pay more than seventy-five percent of benefits). Social Security provides guaranteed benefits, with a surplus invested in U.S. Treasury securities, which are considered the safest investment in the world. Personal accounts would not guarantee benefits; instead, a person’s retirement savings would depend on how their investments fare in the hands of Wall Street.

Under current law, the Super Committee must agree on a plan to send to Congress by Nov. 23. Cuts to Social Security and Medicare should not be a part of any deficit reduction plan and we must let the committee know that. The members are: Rep. Hensarling, Rep. Dave Camp (R-MI), Rep. Fred Upton (R-MI), Rep. Xavier Beccera (DCA), Rep. James Clyburn (D-SC), Rep. Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), Sen. John Kyl (R-AZ), Sen. Rob Portman (ROH), Sen. Toomey, Sen. Patty Murray (D-WA), Sen. Max Baucus (D-MT), and Sen. John Kerry (D-MA).

APWU Thanks U.S. Veterans

In honor of Veterans Day, on behalf of the Retirees Department, we would like to thank all those who have served in the U.S. military.

Featured in this issue is APWU Retirees Department member James Walter, who served in the U.S. Army and Merchant Marine Corps in World War II. Many of you may remember Walter, who also goes by the name “Bucky,” as the Alabama state president or as the vice-president of the Memphis region in the United Federation of Postal Clerks.

After the war, Bucky entered the Railway Mail Service in Birmingham. Soon thereafter, he was elected shop steward, and in 1963, he was appointed to the National Scheme Committee, where he assisted in writing the first rules on scheme studies. When the APWU formed in 1971, Bucky participated in the negotiations of the first contract between APWU and the USPS.

In retirement, Bucky works as a realtor. He is very active in veterans’ affairs as commander of Post 668 of Veterans of Foreign Wars in Birmingham, as president of American Merchant Marine Veterans of Alabama, and as a member of the American Legion.

Looking back on his union membership and leadership roles, Bucky said he has the highest regard for the role of unions in the growth of our nation. He encourages us to urge fellow retirees to participate in our campaign to project postal jobs and benefits, and to solve the USPS’ financial problems.