A socio-political evaluation of the Riester subsidy is not possible on the basis of the data and measures currently available. First, there needs to be a transparent report, based on socially criteria, about the declining standard pension level of the statutory pension insurance. Second is...

The paper gives an overview of state consumer policy initiatives that the Federal Ministry of Food, Agriculture and Consumer Protection (BMELV) is (co-)responsible for, with respect to financial services in general, and Riester-Rente products specifically. Der Beitrag gibt einen Überblick über...

Analyses based on data from the Zulagenstelle für Altersvermögen (ZfA) show a high proportion of low wage earners among Riester-Rente savers. This result cannot be generalized to the population because the data include only Riester-Rente savers. However, analyses based on the Socio-Economic...

The creeping stock market collapse eroded the wealth of funded pension systems. This led to political tensions between generations due to the fuzzy definition of property rights on the pension funds wealth. We argue that this problem can best be resolved by the introduction of generational...

With its Byzantine complexity and jurisdictional overlap, Canadian pension regulation makes it difficult for many workers to save enough for retirement. Access to retirement saving room is inequitably distributed between public and private sector workers. This paper offers some practical...

By all measures the private pension system in Canada is in difficulty. One estimate suggests that at the end of 2005 there were significant funding shortfalls in about three quarters of the traditional defined benefit pension plans that fall under federal jurisdiction in Canada. In order to...

Purpose: This paper investigates whether permanent, one-time retirements are coming to an end just as the trend towards earlier and earlier retirements did nearly 20 years ago. We explore how common bridge jobs are among today’s retirees, and how uncommon traditional retirements have become....

In dit artikel onderzoeken we of de averechtse effecten van de huidige werkloosheidsverzekeringen kunnen worden omzeild door de WW te vervangen door individuele spaarfondsen. Deze spaarfondsen worden door werknemers opgebouwd uit verplichte stortingen en WW-uitkeringen worden op individuele...

Demographic realities will soon force developed countries to find ways to pay for longer retirements for more people. In Pension Strategies in Europe and the United States, leading economists analyze topical issues in pension policy, with a focus on raising the retirement age, increasing...

The United States Social Security fund is huge and in trouble. The United Kingdom has experimented with the voluntary contracting out of pensions to the private sector. Chile has privatized its public pension system. Australia has adopted a means-tested public pension system. Japan has the...