Ask Our Experts
By: Source: AARP Bulletin Today Date Posted: 2004-12-17 12:04:00-05:00
The AARP Bulletin's Ask Our Experts column provides answers to important questions affecting older Americans. Read below for this month's column, or review our archive of previously published questions and answers sorted by topic. (Note: Recent news or changes to regulations may affect the guidance offered in this previously published column.)
Submit your own question to the Ask Our Experts column via our easy-to-use online form.
Q. Could you advise me on how to handle age discrimination in the workplace? I have worked for a company for 16 years, and the son of the owner has just taken over. He won’t fire me, but he's given some of my shifts to other workers and is trying everything to make me quit. What can I do?
The federal Age Discrimination in Employment Act protects workers age 40 and older from discriminatory practices, including reducing workers’ hours because of their age. Your state’s antidiscrimination law may also offer remedies.
An employer is not allowed to make working conditions so onerous that a reasonable employee has no real choice except to quit, a situation legally known as a constructive discharge. An employment attorney can tell you if your case meets that standard and if you have a valid age discrimination claim.
It is important to seek legal advice quickly because of time limits for filing claims under federal and state laws. Call AARP at (202) 434-2121 for more information.—Expertise provided by Tom Osborne
Q. Does the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.'s bank insurance limit of $100,000 per depositor apply to just one account, or can several accounts, such as IRA and joint accounts, be insured at the same bank?
The limit depends on the ownership category of the account (single, joint, self-directed retirement or revocable trust). If you have, for example, a checking account, a savings account and a certificate of deposit at the same insured bank, and all three accounts are in your name only, the three accounts combined are insured up to $100,000.
Deposits held in an individual retirement account, however, would not be included in this total because they are protected in a separate ownership category up to $100,000. Therefore, you may qualify for more than $100,000 in insurance coverage at the same insured bank.
The FDIC maintains an online estimator that can help you calculate your insurance coverage. Check the website or call (877) 275-3342 toll-free for more information.—Expertise provided by George Gaberlavage
Q. As a new citizen in 2000, I will not have enough employment credits by age 65 to be eligible for Medicare when my current HMO plan expires. Is there any way I can still enroll in Medicare?
You can only "earn" entitlement to Medicare benefits through contributions to the Social Security system as a worker. But if you meet certain qualifications, you can pay a premium to enroll in Medicare Part A, which covers hospitalization. Buying into Part A (eligible beneficiaries do not pay the Part A premium) is open to individuals who are at least 65 and are U.S. citizens residing here or legal aliens living here for at least five years.
Like all beneficiaries, you are required to pay the premium for Part B, which covers physician and outpatient services. Your local Social Security office can provide more details and tell you how to enroll.—Expertise provided by Keith Lind
Q. I heard that the size of your monthly Social Security benefit is determined by how much you earned during the last four years you worked before retiring. Is this true?
No. Benefits are based on a worker’s 35 years of highest earnings. If the individual has worked less than 35 years, a zero is awarded for each year without earnings. Every year the Social Security Administration mails workers a record of their earnings as well as a summary of estimated benefits they may receive.
To read more about how benefits are calculated, go to AARP’s Public Policy Institute’s Research Center.—Expertise provided by Laurel Beedon
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