Public pensions – the primary pillar of old-age income provision – will, in the future, be less generous than they have been in the past, in particular owing to the impact of demographic change. The pension gap is supposed to be plugged by the second and third pillars of pension...

Germany still has a very generous public pay-as-you-go pension system. It is characterized by early effective retirement ages and very high effective replacement rates. Most workers receive virtually all of their retirement income from this public retirement insurance. Costs are almost 12...

Over and again, the reduction of working time is praised as the instrument against unemployment in Europe. While the first round argument appears obvious – less work for some will create more work for others – second round repercussions, such as consequential labor cost increases,...

Global aging will be a major determinant of long run economic development in industrial and developing countries. The extent of the demographic changes is dramatic and will deeply affect future labor, financial and goods markets. The expected strain on public budgets and especially social...

Der demographische Wandel ist auch für Baden-Württemberg einer der „Megatrends“ dieses Jahrhunderts, der die politische, soziale und ökonomische Situation des Landes entscheidend verändern wird. In 25 Jahren wird jeder dritte Bürger Baden-Württembergs 60 Jahre oder älter sein....

Das deutsche Gesundheitssystem mag einen hartnäckigen Schnupfen haben, aber mit einem Schnupfen kann man leben, und andere Gesundheitssysteme haben auch ihre Probleme. An der Zukunftsfähigkeit des deutschen Gesundheitssystems muß aber gezweifelt werden, da viele Selbstheilungskräfte im...

Over and again, the reduction of working time is praised as the instrument against unemployment in Europe. While the first round argument appears obvious – less work for some will create more work for others – second round repercussions, such as consequential labor cost increases, put doubt...

Zwei Jahre nach der "Riester-Reform" befindet sich die gesetzliche Rentenversicherung in Deutschland wieder in Reformnöten. Die der Riester-Reform zugrunde liegenden Annahmen über Demographie und Arbeitsmarktentwicklung erwiesen sich als unrealistisch. Ein wichtiger Ansatzpunkt für...

Germany relies almost exclusively on a public pay-as-you-go pension system for old-age in-come provision. This mandatory “retirement insurance” has become under severe pressure, mainly from population aging and from incentive effects that have reduced labor supply. This paper argues Germany...

As the publicly financed pay-as-you-go pension systems in Europe come under increasing pressure, workers and politicians rediscover private savings for retirement in Europe – the provision of self-financed rather than state-financed old-age insurance. This paper summarizes our knowledge about...