The aging workforce and pensions reform
Retirement and pensions are major policy issues in mostdeveloped countries, which typically face slowing birth rates and increased longevity. As state retirement ages necessarily increase, more people will work later into their lives. This trend raises a number of issues, for individuals, employers, and society as a whole. Will more older workers mean fewer jobs for younger people? How can governments and companies help older workers find work and keep their skills up-to-date? How should state and private pensions be managed? And what implications will this have for where people choose to work and retire?
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Job search requirements for older unemployed workersUpdated
Search requirements for the older unemployed affect their re-employment rates and their flows into states of inactivity
Hans Bloemen, November 2022Many OECD countries have, or have had, a policy that exempts older unemployed people from the requirement to search for a job. An aging population and low participation by older workers in the labor market increasingly put public finances under strain, and spur calls for policy measures that activate labor force participation by older workers. Introducing job search requirements for older unemployed workers aims to increase their re-employment rates. Abolishing the exemption from job search requirements for the older unemployed has been shown to initiate higher outflow rates from unemployment for them.MoreLess -
Is training effective for older workers?Updated
培训项目,满足学习的需要older workers can improve their employability
Matteo Picchio, July 2021The labor market position of older workers is cause for concern in many industrialized countries. Rapid population aging is challenging pension systems. The recent economic crisis has forced many older adults out of the workforce, into either pre-retirement or non-employment. Encouraging people to work longer and fostering the employability of older workers have become priorities for policymakers. Training specifically designed for older workers might help attain these goals, since it may refresh human capital and reduce the pay–productivity gap. Training older workers might also benefit employers and society as a whole.MoreLess -
The effect of early retirement schemes on youth employmentUpdated
Keeping older workers in the workforce longer not only doesn’t harm the employment of younger workers, but might actually help both
René Böheim Thomas Nice, October 2019The fiscal sustainability of state pensions is a central concern of policymakers in nearly every advanced economy. Policymakers have attempted to ensure the sustainability of these programs in recent decades by raising retirement ages. However, there are concerns that keeping older workers in the workforce for longer might have negative consequences for younger workers. Since youth unemployment is a pressing problem throughout advanced and developing countries, it is important to consider the impact of these policies on the employment prospects of the young.MoreLess -
Retirement plan type and worker mobility
Selection and incentives in retirement plans affect job transitions
Colleen Flaherty Manchester, October 2019The relationship between retirement plan type and job mobility is more complex than typically considered. While differences in plan features and benefit structure may directly affect employees’ mobility decisions (“incentive effect”), the type of plan offered may also affect the types of employees a given employer attracts (“selection effect”), thereby affecting mobility through a second, indirect channel. At the same time, some employees may not be able to accurately assess differences between plan types due to limited financial literacy. These factors have implications for policymakers and employers considering retirement plan offerings.MoreLess -
The labor market in Japan, 2000–2018Updated
Despite a plummeting working-age population, Japan has sustained its labor force size because of surging employment among women
Daiji Kawaguchi Hiroaki Mori, July 2019作为世界上第三大经济体和公关ecursor of global trends in population aging, Japan's recent experiences provide important lessons regarding how demographic shifts affect the labor market and individuals’ economic well-being. On the whole, the labor market showed a remarkable stability during the financial crisis, despite decades of economic stagnation and sluggish real wage growth. Rapid population aging, however, has brought substantial changes to individuals in the labor market, most notably women, by augmenting labor demand in the healthcare services industry.MoreLess -
- Labor markets and institutions
- Transition and emerging economies
- Development
- Demography, family, and gender
Redesigning pension systemsUpdated
The institutional structure of pension systems should follow population developments
Marek Góra, April 2019For decades, pension systems were based on the rising revenue generated by an expanding population (the so-called demographic dividend). As changes in fertility and longevity created new population structures, however, the dividend disappeared, but pension systems failed to adapt. They are kept solvent by increasing redistributions from the shrinking working-age population to retirees. A simple and transparent structure and individualization of pension system participation are the key preconditions for an intergenerationally just old-age security system.MoreLess