Entitlement Reforms in Europe: Policy Mixes in the Current Pension Reform Process

This chapter examines the state of pension systems in the major Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) countries, and links the causes of current problems to the potential cures to make the typically pay-as-you-go financed entitlement programs in continental Europe sustainable above and beyond the financial crisis. It discusses examples that seem to be the most viable and effective options to bring the entitlement system closer to fiscal balance and still achieve their key aims (e.g., preventing old-age poverty). The chapter argues that there is nothing like "the optimal pension reform" since the initial state (in particular the current institutional setup) varies as much as the causes for problems in the future.