Suchergebnisse

The Covid-19 pandemic caused lockdown of economies, which in turn led to the worsening of the economic situation of many households. During the first wave of the Covid-19 pandemic governments undertook various measures to support economies and societies, including jobs protection along with financial support provision to people who suffered financial loss during the economic crisis. We analyse the economic situation of older Europeans, depending on their socio-economic status as well as country of residence characteristics, including economic and labour market changes during the first phase of the pandemic, the strictness of government policies but also the country development level using the Human Development Index. We use the results of the Survey of Health, Ageing, and Retirement in Europe (SHARE), including the SHARE Corona Telephone Survey, which was conducted during the first wave of the Covid-19 pandemic. Our results indicate that individual characteristics have a higher impact on individual economic stress, compared to country characteristics. However, country's response to the consequences of the Covid-19 pandemic, but also the overall level of development influences the economic situation and ability to cope with the economic risks people aged 50 and over face. People in more developed countries have smaller difficulties in making ends meet, while the economic crisis and more stringent policies reduce chances to receive financial support and increase economic risks.

Micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (SME) play a significant role in the economy. According to the European Commission data, the SME sector in 2018 represented 99.8% of all enterprises in Europe, and likewise in Poland, therefore it is vital to have access to information regarding this sector and its economic situation on the lowest possible level of aggregation. The aim of the study described in this paper is to assess as to what degree data collected in public registers in Poland, including the information compiled by the Social Insurance Institution (ZUS) register, can constitute a source of information about the situation and development of the SME sector at the local level.
The paper presents the economic situation of the SME sector in Europe, and also a range of information collected in ZUS registers relating to micro enterprises (including the self-employed enterpreneurs), small and medium-sized enterprises. Information concerning the SME sector in Kujawsko-Pomorskie Voivodship as of December 2018 is used in the research. The results confirm that register data enables the assessment of the economic situation of micro, small and medium- sized enterprises at the level of gminas (municipalities, communes), as per the OECD recommendations to broaden knowledge about the condition of the sector at a local level.

The aim of this study is to analyse longevity insurance annuities as a possible addition to social security programmes. The research method is to analyse the strengths and weakness of longevity insurance provided by the private sector and by government, and to survey and analyse examples of longevity insurance benefit programmes that countries have already established. Longevity insurance annuities are deferred annuities that start payment at an advanced age at which a substantial proportion of the birth cohort has died. In developed countries, that would mean that these annuities would start for people in their early eighties, but when social security programmes were started in many countries, the age at which longevity insurance annuities would begin was substantially younger. This study finds that originally, public pension programmes in a number of countries were structured as a longevity insurance programme, with roughly 50 percent of those entering the workforce surviving to receive the benefits because of relatively high benefit eligibility ages. Over time, however, as life expectancy has improved, the benefits these programmes provide have slowly transformed into benefits that most people entering the work force ultimately receive. This paper argues that reintroduction of a longevity insurance benefit as part of public pensions could be an important policy in particular because this benefit is generally not provided by the private sector. These annuities would benefit some older retirees, particularly in countries with modest public pension benefits, but the private sector has problems in providing them, particularly when they must be provided on a unisex basis. A longevity insurance benefit is desirable in countries that rely on defined contribution pensions, where some workers take their benefits as phased withdrawals, and thus risk outliving their benefits if they live substantially longer than their life expectancy. This paper surveys countries that provide this type of benefit. The addition of these benefits to social security may be particularly desirable as part of a reform where other changes being made to maintain solvency are resulting in reduced generosity of benefits.

AbstractWe study the role of formal and informal childcare within the ECEC policies for gender employment and pay gaps, considering the life course stages distinctive for childcare tasks. The ECEC policies are framed within the types of social investment strategies identified in the EU countries to picture developments in social investments after 2005. The aggregated EU‐SILC data from 2005 to 2019 for 27 European countries have been used in the panel regression models to uncover how the caring arrangements influence labour market gendered outcomes of women at different ages (15–24, 25–49, 50–65). We find that better provision and use of early education and childcare not only contribute to early investment in human capital but it also facilitates mothers' employment and thus contributes to lowering gender employment and pay gaps. However, better coverage of care for children older than 3 years old results in negative employment effects for grandmothers. These effects vary also across countries, depending on their overall institutional setting depicted by the types of social investment strategies distinguished. Consequently, the ECEC agenda should be extended by addressing the employment of women at the pre‐retirement age. It is crucial not only for reducing gender gap in employment and pay but also in the light of challenges generated by demographic developments—the labour force shrinking and the population ageing processes.