Why is the WEP an unfair policy?
The WEP causes public employees outside the Social Security system, such as educators, to lose a significant share of their Social Security benefit. It fails to account for the severe effect of the WEP on low-wage SLG employees. The WEP also affects the teaching profession as a whole. Some individuals in SS-covered employment may wish to make a career change and go into teaching. If the teachers in their state are not covered by Social Security, those individuals will be less likely to make the change once they realize that they will lose a portion of their Social Security benefit.
