Workers have a part of their salary taken by their employers and placed in a social security trust fund so that when they retire, they can receive these social security benefits after they retire. The amount of work a worker does equal their social security benefits later. When a worker retirees, the social security check that they receive every month depends on the number of years that they have worked and the amount of money that they have earned. The work that one does is not the only factor that influences the social security benefits later, as the age that one chooses to get their social security benefits also affects how much they get.
There is some work that does will not qualify when one is calculating their social security benefits, some employers may not be required to pay social security taxes. Therefore the work now may not equal the social security benefits later. All military work now qualifies as social security earnings, when some time ago, military work was not considered as social security earnings. Self-employed people are required to pay their own social security taxes. The tax is used to qualify them for Medicare benefits and retirement benefits as well.
In summary, the above is a description of how one’s work can equal their social security benefits later. When one works, they accumulate points that are based on their earnings. For instance, in 2008, for every $1050 one earned, they would get one credit. There was a limit of about four credits a year. The credits that you earned would stay on record even if you changed jobs. Workers who were born after 1929 would receive their social security benefits after their credits reached 40 credits.