Dissertation_Paula Aleksandrowicz_12 ... - Jacobs University

Table 7: Average age of take-up of pensions in Poland, 1978 and 1992-2006
Year old-age pensions work incapacity pensions
Total Men Women Total Men Women
1978 64.3 61 50.7 50.1 51.4
1992 57.0 59.0 55.0 46 47 45
1995 56.9 59.0 55.1 45.5 46.2 44.7
2000 57.0 58.9 55.9 46.6 47.1 45.8
2002 57.2 59.4 56.1 46.8 47.4 45.9
2005 56.8 58.4 56 47.9 48.7 46.3
2006 56.6 57.9 56 48.4 49.4 46.6
Source: Wiktorow (1982: 28), ZUS (1997, 2004, 2006, 2007).
The retirement age in Poland is very low compared to other EU countries, owing to the
frequent utilisation of early retirement. Women most often claim the pension between the
age of 55 and 59 years, and men between 60-64 years (Zgierska 2007: 3). A tendency
towards claiming the work incapacity pension at a later age is visible. With regard to the
old-age pension, between 1998 and 2004, more men claimed it at the age of 60-64 years
than had been the case before (with women, the development was reverse) (Szukalski 2006:
53), but afterwards, the age of take-up has fallen again.
Disability pensions were a frequent way out of the labour market during communism.
This “typically Polish phenomenon” lasted from 1970 to half of nineties (Golinowska 2004:
153). Its origins were the compulsory take-up of an occupation which was needed for the
economy, which resulted in an escape from the labour market and seeking alternative
sources of income (ibid; Halik 2002a: 25-26). Serious health problems in the population,
lack of an effective vocational rehabilitation system, the low standard of working
conditions, easy access to benefits and the disregard of additional earnings 28 further
contributed to early exit into disability (Księżopolski 1997: 341; Halik 2002b; European
Foundation 2003).
After the transformation, the inflow into disability pensions surged from 1.7 million to
3.7 million at the end of the nineties due to unemployment and easy access criteria
(Markiewicz 2003: 4). In 1997, recipients of disability pensions comprised 40 per cent of all
pensioners and 16 per cent of the workforce (Księżopolski 1997: 341). Due to the restriction
of access to and level of disability pensions with the 1997 reform and the ´forced retirement´
of disability pensioners who had completed 60/65 years since 2006, the number of disability
28 Earnings thresholds were introduced in March 1999 (Golinowska/Pietka 2003: 329).
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