Introduced 20 years ago as a part of the 2001 pension reform, the Riester pension is meant to function as an essential component of the German pension system with the aim of compensating for decreasing public pensions. However, data collected by the SOEP show that this objective has not yet been...

We exploit a unique Swiss reform to identify the importance of passivity, claiming social security benefits at the Full Retirement Age (FRA). Sharp discontinuities generated by the reform reveal that raising the FRA while imposing small early claiming penalties significantly delays pension...

"How Social Security has shaped American politics--and why it faces insolvency. Since its establishment, Social Security has become the financial linchpin of American retirement. Yet demographic trends--longer lifespans and declining birthrates--mean that this popular program now pays more in...