Discover 9 Surprising Insights About Social Security for Landstar System Employees That Could Transform Your Retirement Planning

Healthcare Provider Update: Healthcare Provider for Landstar System Landstar System, Inc. partners with various healthcare providers to offer health insurance benefits to its employees. While the specific healthcare provider can vary depending on the insurance plan chosen by employees, Landstar commonly collaborates with major national insurers such as Aetna, Blue Cross Blue Shield, and UnitedHealthcare to provide comprehensive health coverage. Healthcare Cost Increases in 2026 As employers brace for steep healthcare cost increases in 2026, the outlook looks particularly daunting due to multiple economic pressures. With projections of medical costs rising by 8.5% and insurers requesting average premium increases of over 20%, workers can expect to see their out-of-pocket expenses soar as enhanced federal premium subsidies expire. The confluence of increased treatment costs, an aging workforce, and overall inflation is exacerbating these challenges, leaving many employees concerned about their ability to afford necessary healthcare services. Without proactive measures, more individuals could find themselves priced out of adequate coverage, emphasizing the urgent need for strategic planning ahead of these changes. Click here to learn more

Social Security’s been a fact of retirement life ever since it was established in 1935. We all think we know how it works, but how much do you really know? If you work for Landstar System, here are nine things that might surprise you.

1. The Social Security trust fund is huge. At $2.9 trillion at the end of 2018, it exceeds the gross domestic product (GDP) of every economy in the world except the ten largest: China, the European Union, the United States, India, Japan, Germany, Russia, Indonesia, Brazil, and The United Kingdom.
2. Most workers including those at Landstar System are eligible for Social Security benefits, but not all. For example, until 1984, federal government employees were part of the Civil Service Retirement System and were not covered by Social Security.
3. As an employee of Landstar Systemk, you don’t have to work long to be eligible. If you were born in 1929 or later, you need to work for 10 or more years to be eligible for benefits.
4. Benefits are based on an individual’s average earnings during a lifetime of work under the Social Security system. The calculation is based on the 35 highest years of earnings. If an individual has years of low earnings or no earnings, Social Security may count those years to bring the total years to 35.
5. Those at Landstar System may also want to consider how there hasn't always been cost-of-living adjustments (COLA) in Social Security benefits. Before 1975, increasing benefits required an act of Congress; now increases happen automatically, based on the Consumer Price Index. There was a COLA increase of 2.9% in 2019, but there was only an increase of 2% in 2018.
6. Social Security is a major source of retirement income for 67% of current retirees, including those at Landstar System.
7. Social Security benefits are subject to federal income taxes — but it wasn’t always that way. In 1983, Amendments to the Social Security Act made benefits taxable, starting with the 1984 tax year.
8. Social Security recipients received a single lump-sum payment from 1937 until 1940. One-time payments were considered “payback” to those people who contributed to the program. Social Security administrators believed these people would not participate long enough to be vested for monthly benefits.

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9. In January 1937, Earnest Ackerman became the first person in the U.S. to receive a Social Security benefit—a lump sum of 17 cents.

1. Social Security Administration, 2018; CIA World Factbook, 2018
2-5, 7-9. Social Security Administration, 2019
6. Employee Benefit Research Institute, 2018