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Workers’ comp, disability payments may affect your benefits

Many working people have more than one job, so it’s not uncommon for them to have several sources of income. Owning multiple small businesses, seasonal jobs and the gig economy (a sequence of temporary jobs vs. a traditional employment situation) add to the mix — and complexity — of our modern-day economy.

It’s important to keep in mind that having multiple sources of income can sometimes affect your Social Security benefits.

Disability payments from private sources, such as private pensions or insurance benefits, don’t affect your Social Security disability benefits. Workers’ compensation and other public disability benefits, however, may reduce your Social Security benefits.

Workers’ compensation benefits are paid to a worker because of a job-related injury or illness. These benefits may be paid by federal or state workers’ compensation agencies, employers or by insurance companies on behalf of employers.

Public disability payments that may affect your Social Security benefits are those paid from a federal, state or local government for disabling medical conditions that are not job-related.

Examples of these are civil service disability benefits, state temporary disability benefits and state or local government retirement benefits that are based on disability.

Some public benefits don’t affect your Social Security disability benefits.

Your Social Security benefits will not be reduced if you receive Social Security disability benefits and public benefits such as Veterans Administration benefits, Supplemental Security Income (SSI) or state and local government benefits, if Social Security taxes were deducted from your earnings.

If there is a change in the amount of your disability payment, or if those benefits stop, notify Social Security.

You must also inform Social Security if the amount of your workers’ compensation or public disability payment increases or decreases.

Any change in the amount or frequency of these benefits is likely to affect the amount of your Social Security benefits.

To avoid unintended consequences of these shifts in benefits, visit the Social Security benefits planner (ssa.gov/planners) webpage to explore your options.

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