November 2020

03Nov

Australian pension fund settles landmark climate lawsuit

One of Australia’s largest pension funds on Monday agreed to settle a landmark climate risk litigation filed by a 25-year-old member who alleged it was failing to protect his retirement savings against climate change. REST acknowledged in a statement that climate change would lead to catastrophic economic and social consequences and that the phenomenon was a “material, direct and current financial risk” to the superannuation fund. The closely watched case could influence how global funds manage such risks in...

November 3, 2020
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October 2020

15Oct

The Unequal Burden of Retirement Reform: Evidence from Australia

By Todd Morris As governments try to contain rising expenditure on retirement pensions by increasing eligibility ages, there are concerns that such reforms disproportionately affect poorer households. Using detailed longitudinal data, I examine this trade-off in the context of an Australian reform that increased women’s pension-eligibility age from 60 to 65. While this reform led to significant reductions in net government expenditure, the negative effects on household incomes were concentrated among poorer households. These unequal impacts meant that,...

October 15, 2020
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13Oct

Australia. Release the Retirement Income Review: Labor

Labor MP Stephen Jones has joined ASFA and the Business Council of Australia in demanding the government release the long-awaited Retirement Income Review ahead of more changes to super. Jones, who was speaking at an online event for ASFA, criticised the government's latest raft of superannuation reforms and the early release of super (ERS) program. "The Superannuation Minister [Jane Hume]- who flips and flops between ambivalent and conflicted in her own portfolio - argues that there is no cost...

October 13, 2020
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September 2020

30Sep

Australia. New report warns JobSeeker is a ’pre-age pension’

JobSeeker payments are becoming the new “pre-age pension” as the number of older Australians signing up for the dole grows, a new report warns. Parliamentary Budget Office analysis reveals the typical welfare recipient is now an older person rather than a younger man. The reports also shows an increasing share of older Australians and women are relying on the payment for longer periods of time. “JobSeeker appears to be functioning as a kind of pre-age pension payment for some...

September 30, 2020
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15Sep

Australia. Aged care workforce stressed and under pressure

Most Australian aged care managers reported an increased workload and stress in a recent survey, as industry experts warned immediate action is needed to stop staff walking away. A survey of more than 250 residential aged care providers by risk and compliance advisors CompliSpace found 78 per cent of managers felt under more stress and 92 percent were doing more paperwork since the introduction of the Aged Care Quality Standards. CompliSpace chief executive officer David Griffiths said the sector...

September 15, 2020
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14Sep

Australia. Compulsory super saves taxpayer billions: New report reveals

A combination of the super guarantee supplemented with a means tested Age Pension incurs a significantly lower budget cost than providing a similar retirement income via a more generous publicly funded age pension, new independent analysis by Rice Warner Actuaries shows. The Rice Warner report found the Superannuation Guarantee will save the budget $17 billion this year, rising to $100 billion, (in current dollars) by 2058. The new report, commissioned by Industry Super Australia, assesses various policy scenarios using...

September 14, 2020
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09Sep

Australia. Super must not become a meagre pension: Labor

Superannuation should not replace a meagre government-funded pension for a meagre privately-funded one, Labor's financial services spokesman Stephen Jones will argue on Wednesday. He will also demand that the government release its long-awaited retirement income review to provide better information in the current debate on superannuation. In a speech to the Association of Superannuation Funds of Australia, Mr Jones will say that by 2065, there will be about three workers for every one retired person, down from a ratio of...

September 9, 2020
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04Sep

Homeownership Effect on Retirement Adequacy and Government Transfers in Australia

By John R. Evans, Abdul Razeed Whilst the concept of an asset-based welfare system developed formally in the 1950s there is evidence in Australia that the philosophy developed well before then and has continued through advantages for those able to acquire a home over those that cannot in the retirement system. The net cost to government of the retirement system has been reduced below that which would have applied had the own home asset-based welfare system not been introduced....

September 4, 2020
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August 2020

28Aug

COVID-19 Infections, Labour Market Shocks, and Subjective Well-Being

By Ferdi Botha, John P. Haisken-DeNew This is the first paper to present novel findings on how simultaneously (a) labour market shocks and (b) infections in the household, directly due to COVID-19, have impacted on life satisfaction and domain satisfactions. Using data from a world-wide online survey of almost 5,700 respondents across six countries, we estimate the associations of COVID-19-related labour market shocks and COVID-19 infection with life satisfaction and a range of domain satisfactions. Directly due to COVID-19,...

August 28, 2020
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24Aug

Australia. Challenger launches floating rate annuity

Challenger is launching a guaranteed floating rate lifetime annuity, with payments linked to the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) cash rate. The new annuity would provide investors with guaranteed payments that moved with the RBA cash rate, allowing them to not miss out when the rate rises again. Angela Murphy, chief executive of distribution, product and marketing at Challenger, said the option maintained substantial estate and withdrawal benefits, and could improve Age Pension eligibility and outcomes. “This is a...

August 24, 2020
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