[kabar]

It should be noted that those federal employees covered under the original Civil Service Retirement System (CSRS), who did not elect to transfer to the newer Federal Employee Retirement System (FERS), did not contribute to SS after 1983 and do not collect SS upon retirement unless they earned enough SS credits thru some other eligible employment.

I had my choice in 1983 to retain the original system or elect FERs. I opted for the former. All new employees hired after 1983 are required to pay into SS and join FERS. The number of federal employees not paying into SS is small and declining as employees retire.

CSRS employees/retirees also are not eligible to collect their spouse’s SS benefits should their spouse predecease them.

It is a little more complicated than that. There are two sets of circumstances, offset and windfall that apply. Without getting into the weeds, Government Pension Offset and Windfall Elimination Provision.

[Ozymandias Ghost]

“I had my choice in 1983 to retain the original system or elect FERs. I opted for the former.”
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Looks like we’re both “dinosaurs.” I went to work as a DA Civilian in 72 and retired in 2010 under CSRS.

Thx for the links!