October 2018

22Oct

The Pivotal Role of Fairness: Which Consumers Like Annuities?

By Suzanne B. Shu (University of California, Los Angeles - Anderson School of Management), Robert Zeithammer (University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) - Anderson School of Management), John W. Payne (Duke University - Marketing) Life annuities can be a valuable component of the decumulation stage of wealth during retirement. While economists argue that most retirees should annuitize, actual demand in the marketplace is low. We analyze data from two studies to determine how measurable individual differences among consumers affect their...

October 22, 2018
Articles, Pension design, System Sustainability, , ,
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22Oct

The Chinese Pension System

By Hanming Fang (University of Pennsylvania - Department of Economics; National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER)) & Jin Feng (Fudan University - School of Economics) We provide a detailed overview of the current state of the Chinese pension system, as well as its development, its problems and some ideas for future reforms. (more…)

October 22, 2018
Articles, Labor Market, Pension design, System Sustainability, ,
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05Oct

The Experts’ War on Poverty: Social Research and the Welfare Agenda in Postwar America (American Institutions and Society)

By Romain D. Huret,‎ John Angell In the critically acclaimed La Fin de la Pauverté, Romain D. Huret identifies a network of experts who were dedicated to the post-World War II battle against poverty in the United States. John Angell’s translation of Huret’s work brings to light for an English-speaking audience this critical set of intellectuals working in federal government, academic institutions, and think tanks. Their efforts to create a policy bureaucracy to support federal socio-economic action spanned from the...

October 5, 2018
Books, Pension design, System Sustainability, , ,
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September 2018

28Sep

Cost-Benefit Analysis and the Evaluation of the Effects of Corruption on Public Projects

By Robert J Brent (Fordham University) Cost–benefit analysis (CBA) is the basis for rational economic decision making, whether it is for the government or individuals. If benefits are greater than costs, then a project or activity should be expanded. If costs are greater than the benefits, the project or activity should be contracted. And if benefits equal costs, the existing scale of operations is optimal. A social CBA obtains its measurement principles concerning the benefits and costs from applied welfare...

September 28, 2018
Articles, System Sustainability, ,
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17Sep

2018 Global Retirement Index: An in-depth assessment of welfare in retirement around the world

From Natixis Retirement security is arguably at the crossroads of history. On one side is the three-pillar funding model that’s been the basis of retirement systems across the globe for the better part of a century. On the other is the reality of 21st century demographics, fiscal imbalances, and monetary policies that are straining the resources of governments, employers and individuals worldwide. In the balance is our ability as a society to provide individuals with the opportunities and resources that...

September 17, 2018
Adequacy, Books, Labor Market, System Sustainability, , ,
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August 2018

25Aug

Population Aging, Social Security and Fiscal Limits

By Burkhard Heer (University of Augsburg; CESifo (Center for Economic Studies and Ifo Institute)), Vito Polito (Cardiff Business School) & Michael Wickens (University of Cardiff; Centre for Economic Policy Research (CEPR); Centre for Economic Policy Research (CEPR); CESifo (Center for Economic Studies and Ifo Institute)) We study the sustainability of pension systems using a life-cycle model with distortionary taxation that sets an upper limit to the real value of tax revenues. This limit implies an endogenous threshold dependency ratio, i.e. a point...

August 25, 2018
Aging, Articles, Labor Market, Slider-Left, Sustainability, System Sustainability, ,
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06Aug

A Risk Too Far The Case Against Collective Defined Contribution Pensions

By Michael Johnson Royal Mail has committed to offering its workers a Collective Defined Contribution (CDC) pension scheme, designed to split the difference between existing Defined Contribution and Defined Benefit schemes. The CDC idea is winning increasing support. But it is risky, untested and undermines the personal pensions freedoms introduced in 2015 The system risks creating irreversible intergenerational injustice by overpaying pensioners at the expense of current and future employees. It is also unclear whether what is promised to workers is actually deliverable. Where...

August 6, 2018
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July 2018

31Jul

Under-Rewarded Efforts. The Elusive Quest for Prosperity in Mexico

By Santiago Levy My hope is that this book will appeal to all those interested in Mexico’s development. With that purpose in mind, I tried to write a book with a minimum of specialized language and technical terms, so it could be read by many. I hope academic economists find that the central elements of the narrative are sufficiently supported by empirical evidence, even if not all of them are treated with the technical rigor that they would like to...

July 31, 2018
Books, System Sustainability, ,
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16Jul

Social Protection Goals in East Asia: Strategies and Methods to Generate Fiscal Space

By Mukul G Asher,‎ Fauziah Zen,‎ Astrid Dita The book examines the conceptual, economic, and fiscal impact(s) of the Social Protection Floor (SPF) initiative of the International Labor Organisation (ILO) and other policy influencers by first critically examining the methodologies used by the international agencies to estimate the fiscal costs of designated minimum package(s) of social protection programs. The book also briefly reviews the methodologies used and usefulness of the Social Protection Index (SPI) of the Asian Development Bank (ADB). Second,...

July 16, 2018
Books, System Sustainability
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16Jul

The Extent and Nature of State and Local Government Pension Problems and a Solution

By Ross Marchand (Taxpayers Protection Alliance) & Mark Warshawsky (Government of the United States of America - Social Security Administration) Some states and municipalities are in difficult financial straits. Many more have severely underfunded defined benefit pension plans for their past and current employees. At the intersection of these two sets, it is likely that the pension plans are not sustainable and cuts are inevitable, including to the benefits of current retirees. But in many of these states and municipalities,...

July 16, 2018
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