A Fragile Pillar: Statutory Pensions and the Risk of Old-age Poverty in Germany

Stefan Krenz and Wolfgang Nagl
Authors registered in the RePEc Author Service: Stefan Arent ()

No 76, ifo Working Paper Series from ifo Institute - Leibniz Institute for Economic Research at the University of Munich

Abstract: The statutory pension system is still the most important income source among senior citizens in Germany. Due to increasing disruptions in employment biographies since the 1970s and due to the mass unemployment in Eastern Germany since the 1990s, there is a growing fear of post-retirement poverty in Germany. We develop a micro-simulation model to compare the distribution of statutory pension incomes for new retirees in 2020 with those in 2004. The pension income distribution is calculated for Eastern and Western Germany separately, for men and women, and for different skill levels. Throughout Germany, we find a growing post-retirement poverty, especially for lowskilled workers. Eastern Germany will lose its current advantage in terms of high pensions and low inequality.

JEL-codes: I32 J11 J14 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2009
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (5)

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Journal Article: A Fragile Pillar: Statutory Pensions and the Risk of Old-Age Poverty in Germany (2010)
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:ces:ifowps:_76

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