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This paper explores trends and drivers behind the gender gap in pensions (GGP) in Europe, focusing on countries with notionally defined contribution (NDC) schemes: Italy, Latvia, Norway, Poland, and Sweden. Based on current gender gaps on the labor market, the paper relates the progressivity of pension systems and the coverage of child care related spells to the GGP. It shows that NDC countries do not stand out as a group compared to other European countries in terms of pension outcomes for women. Nevertheless, NDC countries differ significantly from one another. Choices of indexation of pensions in payment and survivors’ pension options have a strong impact on genderinequalities. Still, labor market differences are the most important driver of the GGP.

Between 2002 and 2015, temporary employment in Poland more than doubled. Poland became the country with the highest share of temporary jobs in the EU. In this paper, we study how this process affected job quality and job quantity. We analyse the gaps between temporary and permanent workers in six dimensions of jobs quality, adopting measures proposed by the OECD and Eurofound. Of these gaps, the differences in earnings quality, job security, and work scheduling quality were the most pronounced. Job quality has improved for both groups of workers, but the gaps have not closed completely. Firms in Poland prefer to employ temporary rather than permanent workers because of the lower firing costs, tax wedges, and wages associated with temporary contracts. We use a stylised labour demand model to quantify the upper bound of a potential job creation effect due to lower labour costs incurred through the use of temporary contracts. We find that this effect did not exceed 4% of dependent employment in 2015. We cannot rule out the possibility that the net employment effect was zero. Our findings show that even if the availability of less-costly temporary contracts caused some additional jobs to be created, temporary workers suffered from lower job quality in several dimensions.

This edition is devoted to the issue of poverty. Growth of prosperity is not distributed evenly among the Polish citizens, and some of them still cannot satisfy even basic needs. The improvement of an overall economic situation reduces risk of poverty in general. However, in case the risk occurs, efficient and effective support measures should be provided. First part of the report defines poverty, and explains the extent of the connection with such phenomena as economic deprivation or social exclusion. It is vital, as the exact criterion of poverty is ambiguous. Having discussed these issues, we elaborate on the characteristics of poverty in Poland as compared to those observed in other Member States of the European Union, as well as their regional and local dimensions. The key element of this part is to determine the causes of poverty, i.e. to what extent poverty results from the features of national and regional economy, and to what extent from individual characteristics of people. The topics introduced in this part form background for subsequent parts of the report. The second part is devoted to the poverty of certain social groups such as elderly, children, unemployed and rural. Conducted analyses allow to dispel some of the myths in this matter, as well as to bring out the characteristics that are particularly important from the perspective of creating the support instruments for groups that are at risk of poverty. The issue of poverty among children is scrutinised from the intergenerational perspective, and its determinants and possible measures of preventing the phenomenon are discussed. The third part focuses on relations between income inequalities and situation on the labour market. In this part changes in distribution of wages in Poland are confronted with the poverty dynamics. They are supplemented with a reflection on the impact on poverty exerted by changes in the Polish society, including (but not limited to) those concerning household structure or economic activity of women. The phenomenon of so called working poor is also scrutinised here. We determine, inter alia, whether the characteristics of household or of work performed are more important causes of in-work poverty. We also elaborate on the question if situation of poor households is persistent or low-paid employment enables them to get out of poverty. The fourth part discusses available tools and instruments to fight the poverty. The state of affairs described in first three parts allows to take a closer look on efficiency and effectiveness of social policy measures applied in Poland, both tax and benefit based. Special attention is drawn to the issue of financial support of families with children as an element of social and demographic policy. The key features of this part are simulations of the impact of hypothetical changes in currently functioning system on rate of poverty in Poland. The recommendations for public policy constitute the summary of the report.

This NEUJOBS research report focuses on links between age, productivity and lifelong learning. Various data sources (EU-SILC, LFS, Structure of Earnings Survey, SHARE, ELSA, SHARELIFE) and methodological approaches were used in this report. Our analysis identifies clusters of countries with common characteristics of age-earnings profiles (for certain groups of employees) and allows for an explanation of those differences. Some differences can be attributed to the share of sectors, education types, and occupations in country-specific employment. Others are due to labour market institutions and the (dis)incentives to work at older ages provided by social security systems. Additionally, the dynamics of earnings after age 50 differ less between educational and occupational groups than at earlier ages. We show that the dynamics of average wages are strongly influenced by the timing of entering and leaving labour market. An estimation of the impact of LLL on productivity (measured by earnings) at older ages shows that for employees aged 50+, participation in training increases wages in the short-term.

This NEUJOBS research report focuses on links between age, productivity and lifelong learning. Various data sources (EU-SILC, LFS, Structure of Earnings Survey, SHARE, ELSA, SHARELIFE) and methodological approaches were used in this report. Our analysis identifies clusters of countries with common characteristics of age-earnings profiles (for certain groups of employees) and allows for an explanation of those differences. Some differences can be attributed to the share of sectors, education types, and occupations in country-specific employment. Others are due to labour market institutions and the (dis)incentives to work at older ages provided by social security systems. Additionally, the dynamics of earnings after age 50 differ less between educational and occupational groups than at earlier ages. We show that the dynamics of average wages are strongly influenced by the timing of entering and leaving labour market. An estimation of the impact of LLL on productivity (measured by earnings) at older ages shows that for employees aged 50, participation in training increases wages in the short-term.

We present an insight of the socio-economic drivers of economic and noneconomic activity of persons 50+ as well their ability to adopt to SET. Not only the labour market participation, but also social engagement, beliefs, education, religious activities and housework are studied. With the use of European Social Survey data we investigate the general level of the activity among people aged 50+ in Europe as well as the relation between various aspects of activity and general labour market performance. We obtain mixed results on the concomitance of non-market and labour-market activities. We also check the role of personal traits as well as pull and push factors on prematurely leaving labour market in European countries. The differences among countries in terms of the results are confronted with the institutional characteristics of the countries. Finally, selected case studies of successful activation policies are presented.