During the last decade, the Dutch have debated intensively reforming their second-pillar pension scheme. Meanwhile, ten years turned out to be a too short period for pension funds to bring their funding ratios to sound levels, due to among others the worldwide decline of interest rates....

In funded defined benefit pension schemes, contribution and accrual rates are typically age-independent. This implies that pension contributions are front-loaded. As contributions and accruals usually relate to earned labor income, this front-loading may affect labor market efficiency. For it...