December 2022

OECD Pensions Outlook 2022

The OECD Pensions Outlook discusses how to introduce, develop and strengthen asset-backed pension arrangements, the role that employers can play in their provision, and the implication of different fee structures on individuals saving for retirement and on providers. The 2022 edition focuses on describing best practices for developing mortality tables and providing policy guidance on how to design, implement and continue the operation of non-guaranteed lifetime retirement income arrangements. Get the report here

November 2022

Preparing for Retirement Reforms

By Karen E. Smith, Eugene Steurele, Damir Cosic Each of the three pillars of the US retirement system—Social Security, employer pensions, and private savings—suffers from serious problems that could threaten the financial security of future retirees. Social Security is at risk of becoming insolvent. If policymakers fail to act, Social Security benefits will be cut by about 25 percent starting in 2035, and even with reform, some combination of a slowdown in benefit growth for retirees and higher taxes on...

State and Local Pensions: What Now?

By Alicia H. Munnell In the wake of the financial crisis and Great Recession, the health of state and local pension plans has emerged as a front burner policy issue. Elected officials, academic experts, and the media alike have pointed to funding shortfalls with alarm, expressing concern that pension promises are unsustainable or will squeeze out other pressing government priorities. A few local governments have even filed for bankruptcy, with pensions cited as a major cause. Alicia H. Munnell draws on...

October 2022

Swiss parliament committee votes for compensatory measures to reform second pillar pensions

The social security and health committee of the Council of States (SGK-S), the upper house of the Swiss parliament, voted in favour of a proposal to change the second pillar pension system at its meeting last Friday. After in-depth analysis, and disagreements before the summer break, the committee has supported the idea to compensate the first 15 cohorts retiring after the reform enters into force for the reduction of the conversion rate – Umwandlugssatz – used to calculate pension pay-outs,...

September 2022

Macron faces strike as French unions flex muscles

A nationwide strike on Thursday disrupted the French energy sector, taking a large chunk of the nuclear production offline, as workers push for a pay hike amid rising tensions between unions and the government over a planned pensions reform. "Thousands of workers are on strike today," said Philippe Martinez, chief of the hard-left CGT union as he attended a protest march in Paris along with several thousand people, many of them waving red labour union flags. "This is a message to...

French PM warns retirement reform may be forced through parliament without vote

French Prime Minister Elisabeth Borne says a decision will be taken later this week on the parliamentary method to be used to advance contested government plans to reform retirement and pension legislation. Borne does not exclude the use of the constitutional clause known as 49.3, which allows the adoption of legislation without a vote in the National Assembly. What is certain is that the reform will be discussed at Monday's cabinet meeting. The government knows that the parliamentary debate on the divisive...

Swiss voters support increase in women’s retirement age

Swiss have voted in favor of the proposal by a narrow margin in a referendum. Another proposal, on imposing stricter regulations on livestock farming, failed to pass. Swiss voters accepted the government's pension reform plan by a narrow margin on Sunday. The plan would raise the retirement age for women from 64 to 65, brining it in line with the age for men. Read also Sustainable finance policy a ‘blind spot’ for European pension funds A concurrent vote on imposing stricter regulations in...

Women at the heart of Swiss pension reform vote

Switzerland votes Sunday on a divisive pension reform plan the government says is vital to safeguard benefits, including a controversial push to raise the retirement age for women. After two previous attempts in 2004 and 2017, Bern is hoping it can finally garner enough votes for its bid to "stabilise" Switzerland's old age security system, at risk of being submerged by the giant baby boomer generation reaching retirement age as life expectancy rises. One tool for raising more income for the...

France’s far right to oppose Macron’s pension reform, Le Pen warns

French far-right Rassemblement National leader Marine Le Pen said on Sunday that her party will vote against President Emmanuel Macron's pension reforms and against the 2023 budget. "We will oppose Emmanuel Macron's pension reform plans that are unfair and will divide (the country)," Le Pen told a party meeting in Cap d'Agde in southern France. Macron wants to start implementing the reforms, which mainly consist of a progressive rise to 65 of the legal retirement age, next summer. France's far right scored...

Bolivia begins the transition to its new state pension system

The Bolivian Government began the transition to its new state pension system with the announcement of the activities of the Public Manager, a nationalization process that had been announced twelve years ago and that began this Friday with registration of new contributors. The President of Bolivia, Luis Arce, together with the Minister of Economy, Marcelo Montenegro, made official the partial start of the activities of the Public Manager in the administration of the Contributory and Semi-contributory Regimes of the Comprehensive...