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Survivor Benefits and the Gender Tax-Gap in Public Pension Schemes Work Incentives and Options for Reform

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  • Martin Werding

Abstract

Since its inception, the traditional form of providing survivor benefits through public pension schemes has lost much of its legitimacy. As a result of fundamental changes in marriage behaviour and the typical division of labour between married spouses, offering non-contributory benefits of this kind can not only be seen as inequitable. Since they usually substitute for non-derived pension entitlements based on the survivant spouse’s own contributions, they can also lead to incentive effects, especially for married women with some degree of labour force attachment, that appear to be far from optimal. The present paper highlights this problem based on empirical estimates regarding the wage elasticities of labour supply for German females vs males and shows how it could be resolved by installing a joint annuitisation of a given couple’s pension entitlements.

Suggested Citation

  • Martin Werding, 2005. "Survivor Benefits and the Gender Tax-Gap in Public Pension Schemes Work Incentives and Options for Reform," ifo Working Paper Series 7, ifo Institute - Leibniz Institute for Economic Research at the University of Munich.
    • Handle: RePEc:ces:ifowps:_7
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Sandmo, Agnar, 1974. "A Note on the Structure of Optimal Taxation," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 64(4), pages 701-706, September.
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    4. Robert Fenge & Martin Werding, 2004. "Ageing and the tax implied in public pension schemes: simulations for selected OECD countries," Fiscal Studies, Institute for Fiscal Studies, vol. 25(2), pages 159-200, June.
    5. Robert Fenge & Andrea Gebauer & Christian Holzner & Volker Meier & Martin Werding, 2003. "International comparison of old-age provision: revenues, benefits, taxation," ifo Beiträge zur Wirtschaftsforschung, ifo Institute - Leibniz Institute for Economic Research at the University of Munich, number 10, September.
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    More about this item

    JEL classification:

    • H55 - Public Economics - - National Government Expenditures and Related Policies - - - Social Security and Public Pensions
    • J16 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics - - - Economics of Gender; Non-labor Discrimination
    • J22 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Time Allocation and Labor Supply

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