of which the most important, according to national circumstances, are usually the prevention of p... more of which the most important, according to national circumstances, are usually the prevention of poverty and the securing of a minimum level of income security for individuals in old age. Another major objective is that of "income smoothing", which encompasses not only the need to provide income in a reasonable proportion to an individual's earnings during his or her working lifetime, but also the extent to which pensioners are able to maintain their capacity to consume goods and participate in the ordinary way in the cash economy. The notion of benefit adequacy relates to the degree of success achieved by pension systems in meeting these objectives as a whole. It will of course be well-known to the readership of this paper that pension systems typically comprise different components, which may, for example, be contributory or non-contributory, defined-benefit or defined-contribution, mandatory or voluntary and publicly or privately-managed. The specific mix of componen...
If there is one conclusion to be drawn in the light of the present global economic and financial ... more If there is one conclusion to be drawn in the light of the present global economic and financial crisis, it is surely that there will be more crises in the future. Accordingly, we can be sure that any mechanisms by way of automatic stabilization which are put in place now, or in response to this crisis, will again face challenges in terms of the then adequacy of benefits and ability of schemes to protect the living standards of beneficiaries. These mechanisms will, almost as surely, betray new weaknesses. What, then, will be the fate of such rules-based systems? There is no doubt that then, as now, there will be pressures on the supervisors, at the political level, to intervene once again, on a discretionary basis, to correct systemic malfunctions, or even to abolish malfunctioning rules-based mechanisms
In recent decades many countries have “reformed” their contributory pension schemes, generally st... more In recent decades many countries have “reformed” their contributory pension schemes, generally strengthening the links between benefit entitlements and the contributions paid over members’ working lifetimes, but primarily seeking to (re)balance them financially, in the face of strains arising from unfavourable labour market or demographic conditions. The result has been reduced benefit entitlements and levels of coverage, however assessed. The impact has been felt, particularly, by those with shorter, broken careers (due for example to longer spells of unemployment, precarious employment, or family care responsibilities) and with low levels of lifetime earnings. Countries have introduced “automatic” mechanisms which reduce benefits, but without countervailing mechanisms to prevent them from falling below poverty levels. Questions arise, therefore, as to how the adequacy of coverage and benefit levels may be secured, how the non- contributory elements of pension systems should be str...
... Correspondence: Youcef Ghellab, Internationales Arbeitsamt, route ... De facto entwickelte si... more ... Correspondence: Youcef Ghellab, Internationales Arbeitsamt, route ... De facto entwickelte sich die Arbeitswelt weltweit in einer Weise, die man 1952 kaum vorhersehen konnte, indem sich etwa in vielen Ländern die informelle Wirtschaft, für die das „herkömmliche“ Modell einer ...
All of Zambia's pension schemes are deficient in design, financing, and administration. This... more All of Zambia's pension schemes are deficient in design, financing, and administration. This report urges that Zambia restructure its social protection system to complement its new economic strategy. That restructuring must address such basic problems as macroeconomic fluctuations and an unstable financial sector; high inflation rates and politically-motivated low-yield investments and loans; income ceilings irregularly adjusted for inflation; overgenerous public sector pension benefits; and inadequate management of pension fund operations. In the short and medium term, the objectives should be to settle outstanding pension claims, revise early retirement provisions and investment policies, and improve capabilities for administering statutory pension funds. In the long term the objectives should be to convert the Zambia National Provident Fund (ZNPF) into a modest basic pension scheme for private sector employees, and subsequently integrate civil servants and public sector empl...
AbstractAmongst all the topics addressed in the world of work, none, perhaps, reflect the princip... more AbstractAmongst all the topics addressed in the world of work, none, perhaps, reflect the principles of tripartism and social dialogue better than social security. It is natural, therefore, to ask how effectively these key instruments of sound governance have been and are being used in addressing significant challenges presently facing social security systems in many countries. The process of social security reform, notably in pension provision, has been high on the agenda of many countries in recent decades, reflecting the impact of factors such as globalization and demographic ageing. More recently, fresh strains have arisen as a result of the global financial and economic crisis. The International Labour Office (ILO) has sought to analyse and understand these questions, and the ILO Departments of Social Dialogue and Social Security have jointly undertaken studies both before and in the aftermath of the crisis. The evidence shows mixed outcomes. In a range of countries with strong...
Resumen Entre todos los temas que se tratan en el mundo del trabajo, quiz á s ninguno refl eje lo... more Resumen Entre todos los temas que se tratan en el mundo del trabajo, quiz á s ninguno refl eje los principios del tripartidismo y el di á logo social mejor que el de la seguridad social. Por eso es natural preguntarse hasta qu é punto han sido efi caces estos instrumentos fundamentales de la buena gobernanza y si se han estado utilizando para afrontar los importantes retos que actualmente est á n enfrentando los sistemas sociales en muchos pa í ses. El proceso de reforma de la seguridad social, especialmente el de la prestaci ó n de pensiones, ha ocupado un lugar destacado en el temario de muchos pa í ses en los ú ltimos decenios, refl ejando la incidencia que han tenido factores como la globalizaci ó n y el envejecimiento demogr á fi co. Recientemente, han surgido nuevas tensiones como resultado de la crisis fi nanciera y econ ó mica mundial. La Ofi cina Internacional del Trabajo (OIT) ha tratado de analizar y comprender estas cuestiones, mientras que el Departamento de Di á logo Social y el de Seguridad Social de la OIT han emprendido conjuntamente estudios tanto antes como despu é s de la crisis econ ómica. Las evidencias revelan resultados dispares. En una serie de pa í ses con s ó lidas tradiciones de di á logo social efi caz se ha reiterado su val í a. Sin embargo, en otros pa í ses, sometidos con frecuencia a las presiones de graves tensiones econ ó micas y demandas urgentes de las instituciones fi nancieras internacionales (IFI) y otros organismos, los gobiernos han actuado,
If there is one conclusion to be drawn in the light of the present global economic and financial ... more If there is one conclusion to be drawn in the light of the present global economic and financial crisis, it is surely that there will be more crises in the future. Accordingly, we can be sure that any mechanisms by way of automatic stabilization which are put in place now, or in response to this crisis, will again face challenges in terms of the then adequacy of benefits and ability of schemes to protect the living standards of beneficiaries. These mechanisms will, almost as surely, betray new weaknesses. What, then, will be the fate of such rules-based systems? There is no doubt that then, as now, there will be pressures on the supervisors, at the political level, to intervene once again, on a discretionary basis, to correct systemic malfunctions, or even to abolish malfunctioning rules-based mechanisms
of which the most important, according to national circumstances, are usually the prevention of p... more of which the most important, according to national circumstances, are usually the prevention of poverty and the securing of a minimum level of income security for individuals in old age. Another major objective is that of "income smoothing", which encompasses not only the need to provide income in a reasonable proportion to an individual's earnings during his or her working lifetime, but also the extent to which pensioners are able to maintain their capacity to consume goods and participate in the ordinary way in the cash economy. The notion of benefit adequacy relates to the degree of success achieved by pension systems in meeting these objectives as a whole. It will of course be well-known to the readership of this paper that pension systems typically comprise different components, which may, for example, be contributory or non-contributory, defined-benefit or defined-contribution, mandatory or voluntary and publicly or privately-managed. The specific mix of componen...
If there is one conclusion to be drawn in the light of the present global economic and financial ... more If there is one conclusion to be drawn in the light of the present global economic and financial crisis, it is surely that there will be more crises in the future. Accordingly, we can be sure that any mechanisms by way of automatic stabilization which are put in place now, or in response to this crisis, will again face challenges in terms of the then adequacy of benefits and ability of schemes to protect the living standards of beneficiaries. These mechanisms will, almost as surely, betray new weaknesses. What, then, will be the fate of such rules-based systems? There is no doubt that then, as now, there will be pressures on the supervisors, at the political level, to intervene once again, on a discretionary basis, to correct systemic malfunctions, or even to abolish malfunctioning rules-based mechanisms
In recent decades many countries have “reformed” their contributory pension schemes, generally st... more In recent decades many countries have “reformed” their contributory pension schemes, generally strengthening the links between benefit entitlements and the contributions paid over members’ working lifetimes, but primarily seeking to (re)balance them financially, in the face of strains arising from unfavourable labour market or demographic conditions. The result has been reduced benefit entitlements and levels of coverage, however assessed. The impact has been felt, particularly, by those with shorter, broken careers (due for example to longer spells of unemployment, precarious employment, or family care responsibilities) and with low levels of lifetime earnings. Countries have introduced “automatic” mechanisms which reduce benefits, but without countervailing mechanisms to prevent them from falling below poverty levels. Questions arise, therefore, as to how the adequacy of coverage and benefit levels may be secured, how the non- contributory elements of pension systems should be str...
... Correspondence: Youcef Ghellab, Internationales Arbeitsamt, route ... De facto entwickelte si... more ... Correspondence: Youcef Ghellab, Internationales Arbeitsamt, route ... De facto entwickelte sich die Arbeitswelt weltweit in einer Weise, die man 1952 kaum vorhersehen konnte, indem sich etwa in vielen Ländern die informelle Wirtschaft, für die das „herkömmliche“ Modell einer ...
All of Zambia's pension schemes are deficient in design, financing, and administration. This... more All of Zambia's pension schemes are deficient in design, financing, and administration. This report urges that Zambia restructure its social protection system to complement its new economic strategy. That restructuring must address such basic problems as macroeconomic fluctuations and an unstable financial sector; high inflation rates and politically-motivated low-yield investments and loans; income ceilings irregularly adjusted for inflation; overgenerous public sector pension benefits; and inadequate management of pension fund operations. In the short and medium term, the objectives should be to settle outstanding pension claims, revise early retirement provisions and investment policies, and improve capabilities for administering statutory pension funds. In the long term the objectives should be to convert the Zambia National Provident Fund (ZNPF) into a modest basic pension scheme for private sector employees, and subsequently integrate civil servants and public sector empl...
AbstractAmongst all the topics addressed in the world of work, none, perhaps, reflect the princip... more AbstractAmongst all the topics addressed in the world of work, none, perhaps, reflect the principles of tripartism and social dialogue better than social security. It is natural, therefore, to ask how effectively these key instruments of sound governance have been and are being used in addressing significant challenges presently facing social security systems in many countries. The process of social security reform, notably in pension provision, has been high on the agenda of many countries in recent decades, reflecting the impact of factors such as globalization and demographic ageing. More recently, fresh strains have arisen as a result of the global financial and economic crisis. The International Labour Office (ILO) has sought to analyse and understand these questions, and the ILO Departments of Social Dialogue and Social Security have jointly undertaken studies both before and in the aftermath of the crisis. The evidence shows mixed outcomes. In a range of countries with strong...
Resumen Entre todos los temas que se tratan en el mundo del trabajo, quiz á s ninguno refl eje lo... more Resumen Entre todos los temas que se tratan en el mundo del trabajo, quiz á s ninguno refl eje los principios del tripartidismo y el di á logo social mejor que el de la seguridad social. Por eso es natural preguntarse hasta qu é punto han sido efi caces estos instrumentos fundamentales de la buena gobernanza y si se han estado utilizando para afrontar los importantes retos que actualmente est á n enfrentando los sistemas sociales en muchos pa í ses. El proceso de reforma de la seguridad social, especialmente el de la prestaci ó n de pensiones, ha ocupado un lugar destacado en el temario de muchos pa í ses en los ú ltimos decenios, refl ejando la incidencia que han tenido factores como la globalizaci ó n y el envejecimiento demogr á fi co. Recientemente, han surgido nuevas tensiones como resultado de la crisis fi nanciera y econ ó mica mundial. La Ofi cina Internacional del Trabajo (OIT) ha tratado de analizar y comprender estas cuestiones, mientras que el Departamento de Di á logo Social y el de Seguridad Social de la OIT han emprendido conjuntamente estudios tanto antes como despu é s de la crisis econ ómica. Las evidencias revelan resultados dispares. En una serie de pa í ses con s ó lidas tradiciones de di á logo social efi caz se ha reiterado su val í a. Sin embargo, en otros pa í ses, sometidos con frecuencia a las presiones de graves tensiones econ ó micas y demandas urgentes de las instituciones fi nancieras internacionales (IFI) y otros organismos, los gobiernos han actuado,
If there is one conclusion to be drawn in the light of the present global economic and financial ... more If there is one conclusion to be drawn in the light of the present global economic and financial crisis, it is surely that there will be more crises in the future. Accordingly, we can be sure that any mechanisms by way of automatic stabilization which are put in place now, or in response to this crisis, will again face challenges in terms of the then adequacy of benefits and ability of schemes to protect the living standards of beneficiaries. These mechanisms will, almost as surely, betray new weaknesses. What, then, will be the fate of such rules-based systems? There is no doubt that then, as now, there will be pressures on the supervisors, at the political level, to intervene once again, on a discretionary basis, to correct systemic malfunctions, or even to abolish malfunctioning rules-based mechanisms
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