I worked for the Illinois Central Railroad from 1976 to 1983 and have been in the private sector since then, paying into Social Secuirty. I am planning on starting Social Security benefits this October when I turn 70. Would I be able to claim any railroad retirement benefits?
Thank you

Hi,

If all of your railroad work was prior to 1996, I don't believe you'd qualify for Railroad Retirement (RR) benefits unless you had at least 10 years of railroad service. I'm not an expert on RR benefits, though, so you'll probably want to check with the Railroad Retirement Board.

Assuming that you had less than 10 years of railroad service and you don't qualify for a RR pension, Social Security can use your railroad earnings to calculate your Social Security benefits. So, if your years of railroad work were among your highest 35 years of wage-indexed earnings (https://www.ssa.gov/pubs/EN-05-10070.pdf), you should get some benefit from your RR credits in the form of a higher Social Security benefit rate.

Best, Jerry