Le système de retraite américain: entre fragmentation et logique financière

This paper shows that, beyond the institutional stability of Social Security, changes in the private sector as well as the emergence of a new financial paradigm have transformed both the U.S. pension system and the political debate about its future. Although no major reform of Social Security has been enacted since 1983, this system changes slowly because of the decline of defined-benefit schemes and the multiplication of tax-sponsored personal savings accounts in the private sector. Related to a financial and individualistic logic, this phenomenon serves as an explicit model for conservative actors seeking to privatize Social Security. So far, these efforts have failed. This text explains why before exploring the comparative strengths and the limitations of the existing U.S. pension system.