What is the focus of the paper?
This paper describes how an adequate pension scheme can be established in the Netherlands for all workers (employees and self-employed individuals). The existing measures mainly focus on changing behavior and are often not sufficiently effective. The central research question aims at developing a realistic, practical and quickly implementable scenario that takes into account several conditions (legal sustainability, alignment with existing systems, neutrality towards different forms of employment, practical feasibility, and implementation without redistribution between or within generations). To achieve this, various international examples are examined.
What are the implications?
For the successful introduction of mandatory pensions for all workers, the following conditions, among
others, must be met:
- The required level of pension accumulation must be determined.
- There must be oversight of the pension contributions (e.g., through tax returns).
- Adequate guidance must be provided in making the right pension choices.
- In the case of a solution through the third pillar, transparency and accessibility of the supply are essential.
Considering these conditions, an effective and realistic solution can be provided for the problem faced by self-employed individuals and employees without pension accumulation or with insufficient accumulation. It ensures that every worker builds up a pension that meets the societal norm.