<p>"If a starting teacher gets $125K…are you implying that experienced teachers are at the $200K mark? It’s just not true.</p>
<p>I can only tell you what she says she earned. She now has her masters (paid for by the school district.) I have no idea what they top out at. </p>
<p>She lives in Manhattan, and reverse commutes.</p>
<p>“No - it’s thanks to the vast majority of us hard-working individuals paying into this system. Give credit to where it’s due and don’t minimize the contributions of those law-abiding legal citizens of all races paying large amounts into the fund.”</p>
<p>The system would be bankrupt already if not for the contributions of those who never collect (and over a very long period of time - it is only two years ago that the median life expectancy of an African-American male even reached the age where they would be eligible to collect; but they’ve been paying in for 70+ years.)</p>
<p>Department of Labor has excellent stats on undocumented migrants. Almost 80% of those employed pay into Social Security. My state has a large (though shrinking) number of migrant agricultural workers (they may be undocumented, but many have settled out, bought homes, started businesses, and are increasingly sending their kids to college). The industries are so heavily regulated, that payment is in the high 90% range (they pay into workers comp as well, though many are afraid to collect).</p>