November 2023

US Corporate Pension Funding Status Keeps Climbing

The funding status of U.S. corporate pension plans increased in October, largely due to a reduction in liabilities stemming from an increase in discount rates, which were offset by negative investment returns. According to some trackers, pension funding status is at its highest point in decades. Funding Status Increases Fueled by High Interest Rates According to WTW’s pension finance tracker, U.S. corporate pension funding is at its highest level since mid-2001, with the funding ratio of WTW’s benchmark plan increasing 1.1...

Malaysia. Pension system needs upgrading as nation heads towards ‘super-aged society’

MALAYSIA is undergoing a significant demographic shift towards an ageing population.  The World Bank has projected that with 14% of the population aged 65 and above by 2044, it will officially be an “aged society”. By 2056, Malaysia is expected to become a “super-aged society”, with over 20% of its population in that category.  While this brings challenges in areas such as employment, income security and aged care, the shift also presents economic opportunities, particularly in the field of aged care services.  Meanwhile,...

Ghana. GMA demands retirement salary for members, improved conditions of service

The Ghana Medical Association (GMA) is demanding that government put in place measures that will ensure all of its members continue to receive a salary even after retiring. The President of the Association, Dr. Frank Serebour tabled the demand at the 65th General Meeting of the Association on Monday, November 13. In his address, Dr. Frank Serebour said the conditions of service of doctors must also be improved. “We need to be protected from workplace hazards, we need to be given accessible...

Austrian pension funds to lose 7.5% in asset value due to climate risks

The value of assets in the portfolios of Austrian pension funds would decrease by approximately 7.5% in the event of an unexpected increase of the price of CO2 emissions through additional taxes to make fossil fuel investments less attractive, according to a stress test conducted this year by the by Austria’s Financial Market Authority (FMA). This is an improvement from last year’s test showing a 10% loss in asset value. Read also German government drafts law to reform second pillar pension system This year’s...

México. En 2024 se destinarán 1.1 billones de pesos para subsidios

Pese al crecimiento de lo aprobado por arriba de 2023, el gasto en subsidios estará concentrado en las Pensiones de Adultos Mayores, dejando al descuido otros sectores como el de educación, salud o seguridad. Recursos concentrados Un análisis realizado por México Evalúa considera que el gasto en subsidios tendrá un fuerte componente electoral el siguiente año, pues del total de los 1.1 billones de pesos, 465,000 millones serán para el programa de Pensión para el Bienestar de las Personas Adultas Mayores,...

CISS llama a fortalecimiento los sistemas de seguridad social en el continente

El secretario general de la Conferencia Interamericana de Seguridad Social (CISS), Alvaro Velarca, acudió a Washington D.C. para acompañar los esfuerzos de la Confederación Latinoamericana y del Caribe de Trabajadoras del Hogar (CONLACTRAHO) en conjunto con la Federación Internacional de Trabajadoras del Hogar (FITH), quienes tendrían una segunda audiencia pública ante la Comisión Interamericana de Derechos Humanos (CIDH) sobre la implementación del convenio 189 de la OIT en el continente. Previo a la audiencia, Velarca y las delegadas de dichas organizaciones,...

US. UAW goes all in on building Cadillac DC plans for members

The United Auto Workers' talks last month with Ford, General Motors and Stellantis concluded without the long-shot reopening of the "Cadillac" defined benefit plans that union executives had targeted. Instead, the union won enough concessions to make members' defined contribution plans a plausible alternative for securing a comfortable retirement. Analysts say the surprisingly strong deal the UAW secured in those talks from U.S. automakers for member 401(k) accounts could elevate the prominence of DC-related demands in future collective bargaining talks. The...

UK pension funds step in to build affordable homes

The UK’s pension funds are increasingly stepping in to build affordable homes as the housing crisis worsens. Pension Insurance Corporation (PIC), a specialist insurer of defined benefit pension schemes, is the latest to enter the market. It is building 125 affordable homes in Kingston upon Thames, south-west London, in partnership with the developer London Square and its affordable housing subsidiary, Square Roots The £50m project, which is due to be completed by November 2025, is backed by a £4.9m grant from the...

Kenyan Aging Study Aids Sub-Saharan Africa’s Population Shift

The population of Africa is the youngest in the world-but that is expected to change rapidly in the coming decades. Over the next three decades, the proportion of older Africans will triple across the continent. This population will nearly quadruple in Kenya, one of the most rapidly aging countries in Sub-Saharan Africa. And yet demographers report that robust longitudinal data to address the economic and health-related consequences of this demographic transition are largely missing. The Longitudinal Study of Health and Ageing in Kenya (LOSHAK), a...

México. Alza salarial impacta retiros de las Afore por el desempleo

De enero a septiembre sacan 19 mil 533 mdp; cifras de la Consar indican que menos trabajadores utilizaron un mayor monto de los ahorros El aumento salarial que se ha dado en este gobierno tiene un impacto sobre los retiros por desempleo que las personas realizan de sus cuentas de Afore, pues si bien son menos los trabajadores que utilizan esa prestación, los recursos dispuestos de su ahorro siguen al alza. “Los retiros por desempleo crecen por el aumento del salario...