Below is a table from the Social Security Administration's monthly International Update. The Update deals, in part, with changes made in early retirement programs. I don't think that differences in social insurance programs can explain these dramatic differences between countries or that changes in social insurance programs explain the differences over time in individual countries. I don't know what to make of a lot of this. For example, why the dramatic differences between Spain and Portugal for those aged 65-69? In any case, the Update notes that many European countries are raising the minimum age for early retirement under their social insurance programs and that they are generally encouraging older workers to stay in the workforce, or, perhaps, more accurately, punishing those who don't.
Country | Aged 55–64 | Aged 65–69 | ||
---|---|---|---|---|
2001 | 2011 | 2001 | 2011 | |
Belgium | 25.2 | 38.7 | 2.4 | 3.5 |
Czech Republic | 37.1 | 47.6 | 7.6 | 9.3 |
Denmark | 56.5 | 59.5 | 12.2 | 13.5 |
Finland | 45.9 | 57.0 | 5.3 | 11.8 |
France | 30.7 | 41.4 | 2.1 | 5.3 |
Germany | 37.9 | 59.9 | 5.4 | 10.1 |
Greece | 38.0 | 39.4 | 10.3 | 8.6 |
Ireland | 46.9 | 50.8 | 14.8 | 16.8 |
Netherlands | 37.3 | 56.1 | 5.6 | 11.4 |
Poland | 29.0 | 36.9 | 10.8 | 9.4 |
Portugal | 50.2 | 47.9 | 27.8 | 21.9 |
Spain | 39.2 | 44.5 | 3.9 | 4.5 |
SOURCE: "Older Workers Scorecard, 2001, 2005, and 2011," OECD, 2011. |
3 comments:
Here's one thing to make of it...
In countries with good education and health systems, people are able to work longer.
Here's another thing to make of it,
If you think you would live better and longer and prosper more in said other countries, by all means, please go.
For the most part they are no different than Americans. Their stock market went to hell, they don't make any money on savings, few employers offer a retirement plan anymore, and those that do have cut their contributions. Not to mention some of these countries are far worse off economically than we are.
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