Books
The Varieties of Pension Governance Pension Privatization in Europe
Bernhard Ebbinghaus (Ed.), 2011
The ongoing privatization of pensions - the shift from state to private responsibility for old age
retirement income - raises fundamental issues of social and participatory rights. The recent
financial market crisis makes the problematic nature of funded private pensions that fall short of
expected returns dramatically clear. What have been the experiences in developed multipillar
systems? What can be learned for those pensions systems currently under reform? This edited book
compares the varieties of pension governance in ten European countries. Contrasting the experience
of developed multipillar systems such as Britain, Denmark, the Netherlands, and Switzerland with
the recent shift toward private occupational and personal pensions in Belgium, France, Finland,
Germany, Italy, and Sweden. The country chapters investigate how and why old age income
responsibilities are being shifted to employers, unions, and individuals. They describe the
changing public and private pension mix, and describe the particular features of the private
occupational and personal pensions. In particular this book discusses four major questions: who
is covered, what kind of benefits, who pays, and who governs? Three comparative analyses provide an
additional value, describing the long-term institutional change from public to multipillar pension
systems, the variations in regulation and governance of private pensions, and the consequences for
income inequality in old age. This book combines the benefits of a reference work - ten up-to-date
country studies of major pension systems in Europe - with three cross-national comparative empirical
analyses that provide comprehensive information on important aspects of the reform development,
societal governance, and social outcomes of pension systems.
Ageing, Health and Pensions in Europe
An Economic and Social Policy Perspective
Lans Bovenberg, Arthur Van Soest and Asghar Zaidi (Eds.) (2010)
This book presents an engaging overview of the future research challenges for economists and other
social scientists concerning population ageing, pensions, health and social care in Europe. Various
experts discuss how scientific research can provide cutting-edge evidence on income security of the
elderly, well-being of the elderly, and labour markets and older workers: three themes dominating
the current European economic and social policy debate. By adopting a forward-looking approach,
the book discusses the remaining knowledge gaps and research opportunities. It also reviews data
needs and other infrastructure requirements and explores the implications for research policy.
Longevity Rules: How to Age Well Into the Future?
Stuart Greenbaum (Ed.), 2010
What is the "Longevity Dividend" and who will get it? If anti-aging medicine works, why do
anti-aging doctors die? Is Google making us smart or stupid? These questions and more are answered
by the nation's leading longevity experts in the new book Longevity Rules: How to Age Well Into the
Future. The authors use the forum to help policymakers and the public better understand the aging
experience. Compelling facts and figures support the provocative commentaries. In the past century,
which demographers describe as the "Age of Longevity," human beings have extended life expectancy
by nearly 30 years -- a bigger increase than during the past 50 centuries. Now the prevailing
concern among experts is this: How will we respond to the extraordinary challenges that accompany
our new longevity? Thirty-four experts, including medical doctors, scientists, economists,
engineers, demographers, philosophers and journalists provide diverse and often controversial
perspectives on how to ensure that longevity -- the extension of our life expectancy -- becomes
more rewarding than burdensome for individuals and society.
Women's Work and Pensions: What is Good, What is Best?
Designing Gender-Sensitive Arrangements
Marin, B., Zólyomi, E. (Eds.), 2010
This publication aims at exploring difficulties women face in working life and retirement -
and what could be done to achieve more
gender equality and fairness for women and men alike.
Leading pension experts, predominantly women, from East and West, North and South of Europe analyse
the basic challenges through single and comparative country studies. The editors provide facts and
figures on women's lives, work and pensions and draw theoretical lessons and practical policy
conclusions from the studies and gendered statistical indicators.
Facts and Figures on Long-Term Care
Europe and North America
Huber, M., Rodrigues, R., Hoffmann, F., Gasior, K., Marin, B., 2009
Facts and Figures on Long-Term Care - Europe and North America" displays new data on up to 56
countries of the UN-European region.
Despite growing concerns over ageing and its social and fiscal impact, surprisingly scarce information is available on basic indicators concerning long-term care for dependent older people. The present publication seeks to fill this gap of knowledge as it searches for answers to queries and puzzles such as... What exactly do we mean by long-term care? Where to set the boundaries between family or informal and formal care, between home and residential / institutional care, between public and privately financed care? Will demographic ageing further accelerate? What are the typical living arrangements of older people? Who provides care for dependent older people within the family? Is care provided mostly in institutions or at home? Which countries spend the most in long-term care? Are cash benefits one effective way to keep expenditure under control?
These and other questions are being answered.
Well-being of Older People in Ageing Societies
Asghar Zaidi, 2008
Great strides towards rising human longevity in recent times pose new challenges to policy-makers
worldwide, particularly in maintaining the financial sustainability of old age pension systems.
Individuals in their own financial planning for retirement also face critical challenges: they need
to safeguard against risks of falling into poverty during an increasing longer duration of
retirement. To this end, this book provides new insights into how with ageing factors such as ill
health and disability become ever more important in determining the personal well-being of older
people, and these factors have financial implications not captured by an analysis of pension income
alone.
Another important policy implication arising from this book is the extent to which people are
exposed to income risks in their retirement. While individuals and governments already safeguard
against such hazards, this research shows that these measures will need to be strengthened further
in light of the increasingly longer time spent in the post-retirement phase of life and in view of
greater reliance by retirees on diverse and potentially volatile sources of income.
The empirical work reported also highlights the importance of cross-national research on income
dynamics during retirement: the results provide important pointers towards how different social
security systems affect the income risks associated with various attributes and life-course
transitions experienced while ageing.
Mainstreaming Ageing - Indicators To Monitor Sustainable Progress And Policies
Bernd Marin, Asghar Zaidi, David Coleman Mattia Makovec, Michael Fuchs, Michael F. Färster,
Barbara Lipszyc, Orsolya Lelkes, Marius Rummel, Klaas De Vos, Katherine Rake, Jane Falkingham,
Björn Gustafsson, Richard Rose, Olivier Bontout, Jean-Marie Robine, Carol Jagger,
Heinz-Herbert Noll, Christina Behrendt, Mariàngels Fortuny, Roland Sigg David A. Wise,
David Stanton, Agnieska Chlon-Dominczak, Ole Settergren, Boguslaw D. Mikula, Bert Rürup,
Mathieu Lefèbvre, Sergio Perelman, Pierre Pestieau, András Simonovits, Aino Salomäki,
Laurence J. Kotlikoff, Monika Queisser, Edward Whitehouse, 2007
The UNECE region was the first to adopt the Regional Implementation Strategy (RIS)
to monitor Madrid International Plan of Action on Ageing (MIPAA), and the European Centre
is responsibe for "technically and scientifically" supporting the monitoring RIS process.
One of its key tasks is to develop a list of "indicators of achievement". For this purpose, many
international experts contributed with background papers and policy briefs in the April 2004
workshop "Sustainable Ageing Societies: Indicators for Effective Policy-Making", held in Madrid,
Spain. The book Mainstreaming Ageing: Indicators to Monitor Sustainable Progress and Policies is a
compilation of these papers to the workshop, which were extended and revised by their authors
during the past two years. In line with the topics covered in the Madrid workshop, the chapters
are organised into six parts: Part I reviews the changing demographic contexts; Part II examines
income and wealth indicators; Part III assesses the quality of life considerations; Part IV looks
into labour market participation and early retirement issues; Part V reviews the social protection
sustainability issues; and Part VI examines economic growth and financial sustainability
The analyses included in these chapters make concrete suggestions towards quantitative indicators, with an aim to assist national governments in mainstreaming ageing in their policies and in monitoring the progress made. Many of these chapters provide an overview of the current situation and also provide projections for the future. The book will also include an insertion of the final list of quantitative indicators that arise out of consultations with many international experts, related to the four topics addressed in Madrid: demography, income and wealth, labour market participation, and social protection and financial sustainability.