[extropy-chat] the (scary) future of pro-death bioethicsandlegislation

[Max More]

At 03:52 AM 6/16/2004, Robert wrote:


>I believe that the Japanese have slowly begun to raise the age
>of retirement to deal with this problem (though this should be
>verified).  The U.S. of course has yet to deal with it.

Not entirely true, Robert. The "US government" has mostly got in the way 
through skewing financial incentives (though individual financial 
innumeracy is also a major problem). My review of a relevant piece:


Redefining Retirement in the 21st Century
Knowledge at Wharton, June 2 2004
http://knowledge.wharton.upenn.edu/index.cfm?fa=printArticle&ID=996
http://knowledge.wharton.upenn.edu/article/996.cfm

Researching and administering pension plans has increased in complexity and 
uncertainty. Shifting workforce demographics, and changes in employee 
expectations about retirement and the range of retirement options offered 
are the main drivers behind the challenges of retirement policy. This 
article reports on a recent Wharton conference titled “Reinventing the 
Retirement Paradigm,” where academics, government officials, and industry 
leaders debated the fate of the baby boomers and the prospects for younger 
workers. Setting aside several retirement policy issues, this article 
surveys the conference participants’ views on pension planning in relation 
to employment trends among both younger and older workers. Among the topics 
covered are retirement options such as “phased retirement”, possible 
impending labor shortages, the economic impact of retiring baby boomers, 
and how retirement incentives might be adjusted. <BR><BR>

A major concern of the conference was the aging population and its effects 
on the availability of labor. The percentage of the population over 65 will 
expand greatly by 2035, while the main working age segment of 20-54 
year-olds, after brief gain, will drop sharply. Pension coverage as a whole 
has changed little over the last four decades, but defined benefit plans 
have lost ground to defined contribution plans. The latter typically create 
incentives for early retirement­an effect that is now the opposite of what 
is needed. One speaker examined the idea of “phased retirement,” in which 
older workers continue with their employers on a part-time basis, but noted 
difficulties in freeing up some early retirement benefits. <BR><BR>

The long-term bias against employing older people may finally be weakening, 
as companies face the facts of changing workforce demographics. In a 
related change, some companies have abandoned prohibitions against rehiring 
retirees. However, many workers who claim they want to continue working 
after retirement age do not actually do so. Workers are more likely to 
retire if they have defined benefit pension plans. Other significant 
factors include health insurance and being self-employed. Researchers have 
found that workers either do not understand their finances or fail to 
incorporate them into retirement planning until they reach retirement age. 
Despite the demographic pressures, employers are resistant to changing 
their incentive plans.



_______________________________________________________
Max More, Ph.D.
max at maxmore.com or more at extropy.org
http://www.maxmore.com
Strategic Philosopher
Chairman, Extropy Institute. http://www.extropy.org <more at extropy.org>
________________________________________________________________
Director of Content Solutions, ManyWorlds Inc.: http://www.manyworlds.com
--- Thought leadership in the innovation economy
m.more at manyworlds.com
_______________________________________________________