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on Economics of Ageing |
| By: | Bernardo Lanza Queiroz (Cedeplar/UFMG); Moema Gonçalves Bueno Figoli (Cedeplar/UFMG) |
| Abstract: | This article examines the evolution of retirement in Brazil and its old-age support programs (public pension). The key objective is to show that given the current trend in population and size of the programs, their sustainability in the near future may be endangered. In this paper, we also provide a measure of public pension expenditure under different policy scenarios. This paper provides empirical evidence indicating that the absence of appropriate policies can aggravate adverse effects of population aging. We show that the public pension system works less efficiently than desired and that it is already in a weaker condition than systems in more developed nations. We contribute to the debate on how critical policy areas may reduce the potential economic impact of demographic changes. |
| Keywords: | public pension system, population aging, demographic changes, forecasting. |
| JEL: | J10 J14 J18 |
| Date: | 2011–08 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:cdp:texdis:td438&r=age |
| By: | Aaron George Grech |
| Abstract: | Spurred by the ageing transition, many governments have made wide-ranging reforms, dramatically changing Europe's pensions landscape. Nevertheless there remain concerns about future costs, while unease about adequacy is growing. This study develops a comprehensive framework to assess pension system sustainability. It captures the effects of reforms on the ability of systems to alleviate poverty and maintain living standards, while setting out how reforms change future costs and relative entitlements for different generations. This framework differs from others, which just look at generosity at the point of retirement, as it uses pension wealth - the value of all transfers during retirement. This captures the impact of both longevity and changes in the value of pensions during retirement. Moreover, rather than focusing only on average earners with full careers, this framework examines individuals at different wage levels, taking account of actual labour market participation. The countries analysed cover 70% of the EU's population and include examples of all system types. Our estimates indicate that while reforms have decreased generosity significantly, in most, but not all, countries the poverty alleviation function remains strong, particularly where minimum pensions have improved. However, moves to link benefits to contributions have made some systems less progressive, raising adequacy concerns for women and those on low incomes. The consumption smoothing function of state pensions has declined noticeably, suggesting the need for longer working lives or additional private saving for individuals to maintain pre-reform living standards. Despite the reforms, the size of entitlements of future generations should remain similar to that of current generations, in most cases, as the effect of lower annual benefits should be offset by longer retirement. Though reforms have helped address the financial challenge faced by pension systems, in many countries pressures remain strong and further reforms are likely. |
| Keywords: | Social Security and Public Pensions, Retirement, Poverty, Retirement Policies |
| JEL: | H55 I38 J26 |
| Date: | 2010–09 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:cep:sticas:case140&r=age |
| By: | Kevin E. Cahill (Sloan Center on Aging & Work at Boston College); Michael D. Giandrea (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics); Joseph F. Quinn (Boston College) |
| Abstract: | Is bridge job prevalence reduced significantly if a change in occupation is required in addition to the hours and tenure requirements that typically define bridge job employment? Prior research has shown that the majority of older Americans with career employment do not exit the labor force directly from their careers. Rather, most career individuals take on a “bridge job” later in life, that is, a job that follows full-time career (FTC) employment and precedes complete labor force withdrawal (i.e., retirement). One criticism of this finding is that bridge job prevalence may be overstated because the definition of a bridge job in the existing literature does not require a change in occupation. This paper investigates the extent to which bridge jobs involve a change in occupation or a switch to part-time status, both of which may signal retirement transitions as opposed to continued career employment, albeit with a different employer. We use the Health and Retirement Study (HRS), a nationally-representative longitudinal dataset of older Americans that began in 1992 as the basis for our analysis. We find that, among HRS respondents who were on a FTC job at the time of the first interview and who changed jobs in subsequent waves, 48 percent of the men and 40 percent of the women also changed occupations, using 2-digit occupation codes. Further, when hours worked are also considered, we find that more than three quarters of FTC respondents who changed jobs later in life had either a change in occupation or a switch from full-time to part-time status. Finally, an examination of those career workers who changed jobs but not occupations and who remained working full time reveals that, as a whole, they resemble those who took bridge jobs rather than those who remained on their FTC job. We conclude that the vast majority of career workers who changed jobs later in life did in fact do so as part of a retirement transition. |
| Keywords: | Economics of Aging, Partial Retirement, Occupation Change, Gradual Retirement |
| JEL: | J26 J14 J32 H55 |
| Date: | 2011–08 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:bls:wpaper:ec110050&r=age |
| By: | ANGELINI, V.;; CAVAPOZZI, D.;; CORAZZINI L.;; PACCAGNELL O.; |
| Abstract: | Self-reported life satisfaction is highly heterogeneous across similar countries. This phenomenon can be largely explained by the di¤erent scales and benchmarks adopted by individuals when evaluating themselves. We use cross-sectional data on the population aged 50 and over in ten European countries to compare estimates from a model in which reporting styles are assumed to be constant across respon- dents with those from a model in which anchoring vignettes are used to correct for individual-speci?c scale biases. We ?nd that variations in response scales explain a large part of the di¤erences found in raw data. Moreover, the cross-country ranking in life satisfaction signi?cantly depends on scale biases. |
| Keywords: | Life satisfaction, scale biases, anchoring vignettes, counterfactuals |
| JEL: | C42 D12 I31 J14 |
| Date: | 2011–07 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:yor:hectdg:11/20&r=age |