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

Healthcare Provider Update: Healthcare Provider for Loews Loews Corporation utilizes Aetna for its employee healthcare coverage. Aetna is known for providing a range of health insurance services, including employer-sponsored insurance, which aligns with Loews' needs for its workforce. Potential Healthcare Cost Increases in 2026 As we look ahead to 2026, healthcare costs are projected to escalate significantly, driven largely by the potential expiration of enhanced federal premium subsidies and rising medical expenses. Many states, particularly New York and Arkansas, are witnessing proposed premium hikes exceeding 60%, reflecting a broader average increase of 20% across the ACA Marketplace. This alarming trend forecasts that over 22 million marketplace enrollees could see their premiums spike by more than 75%, making it increasingly challenging for families to afford comprehensive healthcare coverage. 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 Loews, 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 Loews 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 Loewsk, 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 Loews 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 Loews.
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.

Featured Video

Articles you may find interesting:

Loading...
• Corporate Employees: 8 Factors When Choosing a Mutual Fund
• Use of Escrow Accounts: Divorce
• Medicare Open Enrollment for Corporate Employees: Cost Changes in 2024!
• Stages of Retirement for Corporate Employees
• 7 Things to Consider Before Leaving Your Company
• How Are Workers Impacted by Inflation & Rising Interest Rates?
• Lump-Sum vs Annuity and Rising Interest Rates
• Internal Revenue Code Section 409A (Governing Nonqualified Deferred Compensation Plans)
• Corporate Employees: Do NOT Believe These 6 Retirement Myths!
• 401K, Social Security, Pension – How to Maximize Your Options
• Have You Looked at Your 401(k) Plan Recently?
• 11 Questions You Should Ask Yourself When Planning for Retirement
• Worst Month of Layoffs In Over a Year!
• Corporate Employees: 8 Factors When Choosing a Mutual Fund
• Use of Escrow Accounts: Divorce
• Medicare Open Enrollment for Corporate Employees: Cost Changes in 2024!
• Stages of Retirement for Corporate Employees
• 7 Things to Consider Before Leaving Your Company
• How Are Workers Impacted by Inflation & Rising Interest Rates?
• Lump-Sum vs Annuity and Rising Interest Rates
• Internal Revenue Code Section 409A (Governing Nonqualified Deferred Compensation Plans)
• Corporate Employees: Do NOT Believe These 6 Retirement Myths!
• 401K, Social Security, Pension – How to Maximize Your Options
• Have You Looked at Your 401(k) Plan Recently?
• 11 Questions You Should Ask Yourself When Planning for Retirement
• Worst Month of Layoffs In Over a Year!
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