Social Security
Social Security is a federal benefit program funded by taxes on employees and their employers. Social Security and Medicare taxes are withheld from your paycheck and the university matches that amount, sends those taxes to the Internal Revenue Service, and reports your earnings to the Social Security Administration.
Benefits are paid primarily during retirement and are meant to supplement other income you have from pension plans, savings and investments. Your Social Security benefit is a percentage of your earnings, averaged over most of your working lifetime. Social Security also provides benefits for disabled workers and their dependents, and benefits for the surviving dependents of a worker who dies. The Medicare program provides health insurance for American citizens and permanent residents over age 65 who work for at least 10 years in Medicare-covered employment, and their spouses.
All employees, with the exception of those claiming student status or holding certain types of visas, pay Social Security (also known as FICA-OASDI or Federally Insured Contributions Act—Old Age, Survivor and Dependent Insurance) and Medicare (FICA-Medicare) taxes through payroll deduction.
The employee and the employer share of FICA-OASDI is based on a percentage up to the annual wage base limit, while the employee and employer share of FICA-Medicare is based on a percentage of all compensation. More information is available at the USC Payroll website.
Social Security taxes are automatically deducted from your paycheck. Make sure the name under which your earnings are reported is the same as the name on your Social Security card. The Social Security Administration sends annual statements to those working in Social Security-covered employment who are over age 25. You can request the statement online at any age, or contact university payroll at www.usc.edu/payroll.