Katja Rivera, 64, is a massage therapist and theater director in Berkeley, California, who says she’s never earned more than about $30,000 a year. When her two daughters were small, she sometimes earned much less.
But Rivera was married for 10 years to a man who has consistently earned much more than she has. When Rivera retires in a few years, she expects to receive a Social Security check based on her ex’s greater earnings.