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Labor supply on the eve of retirement. Disparate effects of immediate and postponed rewards to working

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Abstract

We study two recent changes in incentives to work facing 67-69 year old workers in Norway: an earnings test reform which increases current earnings from work, and a pension system maturation which removes pension accrual from work. Within a difference-in-differences framework, we exploit these changes to investigate the effects of economic incentives. We find the earnings test reform has large effects, while the pension system maturation has no significant effects. The findings confirm that 67-69 year olds can adjust their work efforts to economic incentives, but do so only to thoses related to current income and not to future pensions.

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  • Christian N. Brinch & Erik Hernæs & Zhiyang Jia, 2012. "Labor supply on the eve of retirement. Disparate effects of immediate and postponed rewards to working," Discussion Papers 698, Statistics Norway, Research Department.
    • Handle: RePEc:ssb:dispap:698
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    Cited by:

    1. Christian N. Brinch & Erik Hernæs & Zhiyang Jia, 2017. "Salience and Social Security Benefits," Journal of Labor Economics, University of Chicago Press, vol. 35(1), pages 265-297.
    2. Börsch-Supan, Axel & Härtl, Klaus & Leite, Duarte N., 2018. "Earnings test, non-actuarial adjustments and flexible retirement," Economics Letters, Elsevier, vol. 173(C), pages 78-83.
    3. Tengjiao Chen & Yajie Sheng & Yu Xu, 2020. "The Anticipation Effect of the Earnings Test Reform on Younger Cohorts," Public Finance Review, , vol. 48(4), pages 387-424, July.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    labor supply; retirement earnings test; social security wealth; difference-indifferences;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • J14 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics - - - Economics of the Elderly; Economics of the Handicapped; Non-Labor Market Discrimination
    • H55 - Public Economics - - National Government Expenditures and Related Policies - - - Social Security and Public Pensions

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