IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/p/tul/ceqwps/83.html

Measuring the Redistributive Effect of Pensions

Author

Listed:
  • Alvaro Forteza

Abstract

In this document, I present a conceptual framework for the analysis of the redistributive effect of pensions. The paper makes specific recommendations on the controversial issue of whether pensions should be treated as transfers or deferred income. I show that most pension programs have both dimensions in different degrees and present a proposal to deal with them in a unified framework. The proposal has specific recommendations in terms of accounting and counterfactuals. Using some simple examples, I show that usual accounting and “nonbehavioral” assumptions —particularly regarding non-labor income— may be very misleading.

Suggested Citation

  • Alvaro Forteza, 2018. "Measuring the Redistributive Effect of Pensions," Commitment to Equity (CEQ) Working Paper Series 83, Tulane University, Department of Economics.
    • Handle: RePEc:tul:ceqwps:83
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://repec.tulane.edu/RePEc/ceq/ceq83.pdf
    File Function: First version, 2018
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    Other versions of this item:

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Jonathan Gruber & David A. Wise, 1999. "Introduction to "Social Security and Retirement around the World"," NBER Chapters, in: Social Security and Retirement around the World, pages 1-35, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    2. Alvaro Forteza & Irene Mussio, 2012. "Assessing Redistribution in the Uruguayan Social Security System," Journal of Income Distribution, Ad libros publications inc., vol. 21(1), pages 65-87, March.
    3. Jonathan Gruber & David A. Wise, 1999. "Social Security and Retirement around the World," NBER Books, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc, number grub99-1.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Álvaro Forteza Galceran, 2023. "The Distribution and Redistribution of Income in the Presence of Pensions," Documentos de Trabajo (working papers) 0323, Department of Economics - dECON.
    2. Alvaro Forteza & Diego Tuzman, 2024. "The redistributive effect of pensions. The case of Uruguay," Documentos de Trabajo (working papers) 0924, Department of Economics - dECON.
    3. Bernardo Lanza Queiroz, 2007. "The determinants of male retirement in urban Brazil," Nova Economia, Economics Department, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais (Brazil), vol. 17(1), pages 11-36, January-A.
    4. Gruber, Jonathan & Kanninen, Ohto & Ravaska, Terhi, 2022. "Relabeling, retirement and regret," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 211(C).
    5. Gilles Le Garrec & Stéphane Lhuissier, 2011. "Life expectancy, heavy work and the return to education: lessons for the social security reform," Sciences Po Economics Publications (main) hal-01069511, HAL.
    6. Assar Lindbeck & Mats Persson, 2003. "The Gains from Pension Reform," Journal of Economic Literature, American Economic Association, vol. 41(1), pages 74-112, March.
    7. Hugo Benítez-Silva & José Ignacio García-Pérez & Sergi Jiménez-Martín, 2014. "Reforming the U.S. Social Security system accounting for employment uncertainty," Economics Working Papers 1455, Department of Economics and Business, Universitat Pompeu Fabra.
    8. Axel Börsch-Supan & Tabea Bucher-Koenen & Felizia Hanemann, 2018. "Early Determinants of Work Disability in an International Perspective," NBER Working Papers 25142, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    9. Niels Vermeer & Maarten Rooij & Daniel Vuuren, 2019. "Retirement Age Preferences: The Role of Social Interactions and Anchoring at the Statutory Retirement Age," De Economist, Springer, vol. 167(4), pages 307-345, December.
    10. Laméris, Maite D. & Garretsen, Harry & Jong-A-Pin, Richard, 2020. "Political ideology and the intragenerational prospect of upward mobility," European Journal of Political Economy, Elsevier, vol. 62(C).
    11. Pilar García-Gómez & Sergi Jiménez-Martín & Judit Vall Castelló, 2018. "Trends in Labor Force Participation of Older Workers in Spain," NBER Chapters, in: Social Security Programs and Retirement around the World: Working Longer, pages 205-230, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    12. Takashi Oshio & Akiko S. Oishi & Satoshi Shimizutani, 2018. "Social Security Programs and Elderly Employment in Japan," NBER Chapters, in: Social Security Programs and Retirement around the World: Reforms and Retirement Incentives, pages 271-296, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    13. Thomas Gries & Stefan Jungblut & Tim Krieger & Henning Meyer, 2019. "Economic Retirement Age and Lifelong Learning: A Theoretical Model With Heterogeneous Labor, Biased Technical Change and International Sourcing," German Economic Review, Verein für Socialpolitik, vol. 20(2), pages 129-170, May.
    14. Cremer, Helmuth & Lozachmeur, Jean-Marie & Pestieau, Pierre, 2004. "Social security, retirement age and optimal income taxation," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 88(11), pages 2259-2281, September.
    15. Michele Belloni & Rob Alessie, 2008. "The Importance of Financial Incentives on Retirement Choices," Tinbergen Institute Discussion Papers 08-052/3, Tinbergen Institute.
    16. Hugo Benítez-Silva & J. Ignacio García-Pérez & Sergi Jiménez-Martín, 2011. "The effects of employment uncertainty and wealth shocks on the labor supply and claiming behavior of older American workers," Economics Working Papers 1275, Department of Economics and Business, Universitat Pompeu Fabra.
    17. Aronsson, Thomas & Blomquist, Sören, 2010. "The Standard Deviation of Life-Length, Retirement Incentives, and Optimal Pension Design," Working Paper Series, Center for Fiscal Studies 2010:11, Uppsala University, Department of Economics.
    18. Vogel, Edgar & Ludwig, Alexander & Börsch-Supan, Axel, 2017. "Aging and pension reform: extending the retirement age and human capital formation," Journal of Pension Economics and Finance, Cambridge University Press, vol. 16(1), pages 81-107, January.
    19. Lundberg, Jacob & Norell, John, 2018. "Taxes, benefits and labour force participation: A survey of the quasi-experimental literature," Ratio Working Papers 313, The Ratio Institute.
    20. Johan Saeverud, 2025. "The Impact Of Social Security Eligibility And Pension Wealth On Retirement," CEBI working paper series 24-05, University of Copenhagen. Department of Economics. The Center for Economic Behavior and Inequality (CEBI).

    More about this item

    Keywords

    ;
    ;
    ;

    JEL classification:

    • D31 - Microeconomics - - Distribution - - - Personal Income and Wealth Distribution
    • H55 - Public Economics - - National Government Expenditures and Related Policies - - - Social Security and Public Pensions
    • I38 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Welfare, Well-Being, and Poverty - - - Government Programs; Provision and Effects of Welfare Programs

    NEP fields

    This paper has been announced in the following NEP Reports:

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:tul:ceqwps:83. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Nora Lustig (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://edirc.repec.org/data/detulus.html .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.