European pension reform

This is the white paper by the European Commission on pension reform. We see first that parametric reforms (change in age of retirement, for example), are reducing replacement rates in most countries, but not in all. Second, we see that there are large differences in the share of Europeans working after age 55: 70% in Sweden, 57% in the UK, and only 36% in Italy.

The main recommendations of the report:

• improve job opportunities for older workers,
• encourage private retirement schemes and provide incentives including tax breaks,
• improve protection for international migrants,
• link retirement age with life expectancy, restricting early retirement and closing the pension gap between men and women.