Dissertation_Paula Aleksandrowicz_12 ... - Jacobs University

3.3.4. Impact of Institutional and Structural Changes on Retirement
Transitions and Labour Force Participation
In this section, the impact of changes in pension and labour market laws upon labour
market exit will be analysed with the help of statistical indicators. Also the individual
retirement preferences will be compared across time as this indicates the impact of
institutional factors upon the life course and retirement decisions. That way, the aggregate
result of the interaction of institutional constraints, structural factors and individual
retirement preferences will be shown (see Fig. 2 in chapter 2.).With the help of those
statistical indicators, hypothesis 4 will be tested.
Since the ´big bang´ transition in Poland, the relations of the number of persons
economically active and passive have been distorted as the result of intentional socioeconomic
policy – the number of retirees and pensioners markedly exceeded in 2002 the
number of persons in post productive age (Kabaj 2003: 46-48). About 50 per cent of Poles
in pre-retirement age (3 million people as of 2006) are inactive, relying on benefits from
social security and assistance systems (MPiPS 2008: 11).
The retirement and inactivity transitions of older Poles were responsive to institutional
changes and the situation on the labour market. Growing unemployment after the transition,
accompanied by easy access to disability pensions and the new opportunity of early
retirement after the closure of the company contributed to a rapidly rising inflow into the
old-age and pension system. That process is depicted for the period 1997-2006 in Figure 9.
Evasive strategies are visible – pre-retirement benefits and allowances have substituted early
old-age pensions, esp. the dismantled early old-age pensions ´for economic reasons´ (MPiPS
2008: 52). The growth in the take-up rates of pre-retirement benefits and allowances
occurred as result of growing unemployment (Golinowska/Pietka 2003: 337). They served
as an incentive to persons who would have otherwise remained on the labour market
(Woźniak 2007: 41). However, take-up of pre-retirement benefits has decreased since 2004,
probably owing to more strict rulings of their receipt. The falling absolute numbers of new
benefit recipients reflects the completion of the restructuring process.
81