Abstract
The 1990s and early 2000s have shown that in democratic polities reforms of pension systems — parametric (path-dependent) as well as systemic (path-departing) changes — were not impracticable as was suggested by research on the “new politics of the welfare state” (Pierson, 1994, 2001). Reforms came about when incumbent governments were able to shift or share the blame for retrenchments enacted, to hide the true impact of changes, or expected to reap credit for reforms that put pension systems on a more sustainable footing in view of advancing population aging (Hinrichs, 2011). After 2008, however, in the wake of the “Great Recession” in a number of European countries plagued with high budget deficits and mounting sovereign debt, pension reforms came to the fore that were different in two respects. First, their magnitude was large, particularly when the sequel of changes was added up. Sometimes even the hitherto pursued policy direction was moved, and the reforms (will) cause a substantial and immediate negative impact on the living conditions of present and future retirees. In a situation where austerity is no longer simply “permanent” but rather “pervasive,” it is hardly surprising that public pensions became a prime target for saving on expenditure because, almost everywhere, they are by far the largest item of welfare-state spending.
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Hinrichs, K. (2015). Sovereign Debt Crises and Pension Reforms in Europe. In: Torp, C. (eds) Challenges of Aging. Palgrave Macmillan, London. https://doi.org/10.1057/9781137283177_6
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1057/9781137283177_6
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