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Life expectancy, heavy work and the return to education: lessons for the social security reform

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  • Gilles Le Garrec

    (Observatoire français des conjonctures économiques)

  • Stéphane Lhuissier

    (Centre de recherche de la Banque de France)

Abstract

In most industrial countries, while the calculation of pension bene ts is progressive, public pension systems redistribute weakly from high to low- income earners. They are close to actuarial fairness. This statement results from the following speci city: less paid jobs are also heavier and health- damaging jobs involving losses in life expectancy. As avoiding low earnings and hard-working conditions require acquisition of skills, we study conjointly in this article the impact of social security and the work-related life expectancy loss on the schooling decision. We then study macroeconomic and distributional consequences of global gain in life expectancy associated with di¤erent social security reforms, focusing particularly on spillover e¤ects possibly generated by education.

Suggested Citation

  • Gilles Le Garrec & Stéphane Lhuissier, 2011. "Life expectancy, heavy work and the return to education: lessons for the social security reform," Sciences Po publications 2011-18, Sciences Po.
    • Handle: RePEc:spo:wpmain:info:hdl:2441/eu4vqp9ompqllr09hi6860cc6
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    More about this item

    Keywords

    social security; human capital; inequality;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • H55 - Public Economics - - National Government Expenditures and Related Policies - - - Social Security and Public Pensions
    • J31 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Wages, Compensation, and Labor Costs - - - Wage Level and Structure; Wage Differentials
    • D63 - Microeconomics - - Welfare Economics - - - Equity, Justice, Inequality, and Other Normative Criteria and Measurement

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