THE IMPACT OF LIVING ARRANGEMENTS OF OLDER PEOPLE ON INTERGENERATIONAL TRANSFERS FROM THEIR ADULT CHILDREN IN CHINA

Based on three waves of the nationally representative survey conducted in 2005, 2008-2009, and 2011-2012, this study investigates the effect of living arrangements on intergenerational transfers in China. Outcomes of interest include monetary transfers, contact, informal care, and emotional support that adult children provide to older parents. Both actual living arrangements and the discrepancy between actual and preferred living arrangements are considered. Endogeneity bias is accounted for through fixed-effects instrumental-variable regression modeling. It is found that co-residence serves as a substitute for monetary transfers and is positively associated with the probability that parents would receive contact, informal care and emotional support from adult children. Living alone with children in the same city is positively associated with the receipt of monetary transfers and contact by older parents but is not statistically related to the other two outcomes. There is an expressed desire for independent living among older people, which impacts transfer behaviors in a complex manner. This study provides a better understanding of the role of the family amidst ongoing social security reforms in China.

International Organizations Lending Policy, are There Strings Attached? A Case Study From the Latest Wave of Reforms in the Albanian Social Security System

Pension policy reform in post-communist countries received attention from most international organizations since the early 1990s. Accordingly, Albania has implemented comprehensive liberalization and privatization of the state sector since transitioning to a market economy. This study will look at the impact that the European Union (EU), the World Bank, and the International Monetary Fund had in guiding the Albanian state-run social security system toward principles of decentralization, liberalization and privatization. Specifically, social security reforms between 2009 to 2019 will be examined, along with a focus on the side-effect of the conditions imposed by the three organizations. A mixed-method including literature review and secondary data analysis will empirically evidence growing inequality, with senior citizens poverty rate sharply rising due to reforms in social security. Our conclusions will argue that closer ties with the EU will keep social security in its current form, as the EU does not push for a specific pension system, while the World Bank policy influence will lose ground, thus freeing Albania from periodic social security reforms.

Social security compliance in times of crisis. Evaluating the factors for non-compliance in the HORECA sectors in Greece

This article studies the impact of the economic recession, labor market deregulation and social security reforms on the level of non-compliance in Greece. It examines the theoretical framework of non-compliance in post-industrial economies, as well as the design of social security systems in preventing contribution evasion. To assess the evolution of non-compliance, especially under conditions of crisis, we examine the results of the INE-GSEE survey on the HORECA sector. According toour research findings, employers follow non-compliant practices in order to maximize their profits, taking advantage of the precariousness of workers, whereas workers accept or collude with non-compliance as a survival tactic within a highly competitive environment. Non-compliance in the Greek labour market appears to be a multi-factor phenomenon that cannot be explained exclusively in terms of a unique perspective.

Scientific Approaches to Identifying Vulnerabilities and Separation Vulnerable Populations

The article, based on the analysis of scientific sources and legal documents, summarizes the common modern scientific approaches to the definition of «vulnerability» and the identification of vulnerable groups. It is established that, depending on the field of scientific research, scientists have different approaches to defining the concept of vulnerability and the mechanisms of falling of individuals or groups of people into the category of vulnerable. Thus, for lawyers, vulnerability means the possibility of violating the rights of a certain category of people, for economists – getting into a situation where a person is limited in access to economic resources, which does not allow him to meet the «minimum level of quality of life». From the point of view of sociologists, vulnerability is inherent in individuals or groups that have certain socio-demographic characteristics or social status. For social workers, a sign of vulnerability is the presence of a difficult life situation. However, despite the diversity of scientific approaches to determining vulnerability, prevention of this phenomenon largely depends on the strategy and tactics of state regulation, on determining the priorities and directions of social policy adequate to the situation in our country, aimed at ensuring social protection and social security. Reforms, which are a necessary condition for stabilizing the development of society, should be aimed at increasing the level of social support, based on the needs (taking into account the income of recipients) and targeting (depending on social risks) in providing this support.

The actuarial profession and social security in Brazil from the First Republic up to the Vargas Era

ABSTRACT The aim of this paper was to understand the relationships between the consolidation of the actuarial profession and social security policies in Brazil, from the First Republic up to the Vargas Era. In general, there is little literature on the history of the actuarial profession in Brazil. Specifically, there is no study that addresses the relationship between the development of the actuarial profession and the social security policies at the crucial moment of Brazilian social security expansion during the Vargas Era. This paper contributes to filling that gap. From time to time, Brazilian social security reforms are debated. The role of actuaries in this discussion is poorly understood. However, these professionals have historically been essential to social security policies. This article sheds light on that history. The text may broaden the knowledge on the history of the actuarial profession and its relationships with social security policies in Brazil. This is a historical study, built based on primary documentation. Sources were researched relating to the actuarial organizations for social security in Brazil and the actuarial professionals who composed their staff. The references to the professional trajectories of actuaries were crossed and considered in light of the information gathered regarding the actions of the institutions that employed them. The analysis was qualitative and the material was interpreted with the support of the referenced bibliography. This article reveals that the consolidation of the actuarial profession came about based on the participation of engineers-actuaries in the public organizations that supported the varguista social security policies. The paper also contributes to broadening the knowledge on the history of the actuarial profession in Brazil from the First Republic up to the Vargas Era (1930-1945).

Dismantling the social safety net: social security reforms, disability and mental health conditions

SummaryThis article examines the effects of UK welfare reform since 2008 on people with mental health conditions and disabilities. The results have been profound, particularly during a time of economic austerity, damaging the social safety net and pushing many vulnerable people into poverty and hardship. It has perpetuated inequalities and increased the social exclusion of disabled groups. The holes in the safety net require repair, alongside extensive social policy reform to both protect and empower people with disabilities and long-term conditions.

The Distributional Impact of Tax and Social Security Reforms in the UK from 2010 to 2017

This article presents the results from a cumulative impact assessment of the distribution of tax and social security reforms in the UK since the 2010 general election. The analysis covers the 2010-15 and 2015-17 parliaments plus measures announced in the Autumn 2017 Budget. The article finds that taken as a whole, reforms since 2010 have had a regressive impact across the household income distribution, with average losses of around 10 per cent of net income in the bottom fifth of the distribution, compared to roughly a zero impact in the top three deciles. I also analyse results by a number of Equality Act protected characteristics including ethnicity, disability, gender, single/couple status and the number of children in the household. Lone parent families lose out more than any other demographic group while Pakistani and Bangladeshi adults lose out more than any other ethnic group. The reforms also have particular negative impacts on disabled people, on low income women and on households with children.

Access to Social Protection by Immigrants, Emigrants and Resident Nationals in Turkey

This chapter scrutinises the social protection system in contemporary Turkey in order to examine how different groups of individuals access social benefits across five main policy areas—unemployment, health care, family allowances, pensions, and guaranteed minimum resources. The general conditions under which Turkish citizens and foreigners have access to social benefits in Turkey can be summarized as follows: (i) residence and employment status are important determinants of one’s access to social protection in Turkey; (ii) employment status generally determines the access to unemployment benefits, health care, pensions, and family benefits, while residence status is important for all social policy areas except pensions; (iii) a majority of social benefits provided for Turkish citizens are also available for foreign residents through their employment status; (iv) guaranteed income is granted based on residence in Turkey; (v) access to family benefits may vary depending on one’s occupation, residence, and nationality. The Turkish system of social protection is a fragmented one, with divisions based on occupational differences, residence, income level, and citizenship. This fragmented nature coupled with regional and global socio-economic risks (particularly large migration flows) make structural social security reforms inevitable in contemporary Turkey.