The spread of the state subsidized private pension scheme (Riester pension), taken as a whole, still continues very dynamically. Ten years after the introduction of the Riester pension, however, its distribution among certain groups of the population remains fairly low. One reason seems to be...

There is an increasing interest among social scientists in merging survey data with administrative records from social security institutions. Record linkage represents one way to combine different sources using a unique identifier such as the Social Security number. The informed consent of the...

This paper provides an empirical analysis of what determines access to occupational pensions as perceived by workers. We investigate this issue in Germany, where workers have the legal right to an occupational pension since 2001, but many might lack the incentive or the ability to gather and...

Population Aging poses an evident threat to the financial sustainability of pension systems based on a “pay-as-you-go” (PAYG) scheme. To cope with this threat, pension systems have undergone numerous reforms in many countries in order to keep people longer at work. One crucial element of...

The announced reform of the funding of statutory health insurance providers lets health insurance funds levy unlimited additional lump-sum contributions. The associated reform of social compensation fixes two faulty designs of the current system. On the one hand, the determination of the amount...

Due to its complexity and incomprehensibility the mechanism for the annual pension adjustment in Germany has experienced rising criticism. We compare the actual formula and alternative adjustment proposals on the basis of different criteria. It will become evident that the current formula is...

The financial and economic crisis also left its mark on the privately funded old-age provision (Riester-Pension) in Germany: an analysis of the SAVE panel dataset shows that the coverage with Riester-contracts stagnated in 2008. Only households with low incomes exhibited small but positive...

Against the background of the increasing legal retirement age, broader opportunities for a smooth transition to retirement are often demanded for elderly workers who are disinclined or unable to continue working full-time. This study compares different options for a transition to retirement. It...

Pensioners receive pension payments as well as health insurance and nursing insurance benefits. But pensioners are also contributors to the health and nursing insurance. So the pensioners fund part of the expenditures they cause by themselves. This study takes a closer look at the different...