Four Sides of the Coin: The Interplay of Interests in German and Polish Pension Industries

Abstract

Pension reforms tend toward privatization of fund management, capitalization of savings, and redistribution of risk. An overview of reforms in the opening section identifies the course of the institutional change in Germany and in Poland, which can be broadly associated with Western European and Eastern European types of pension design, respectively. The second section offers a methodical insight in interests of four parties of the game, that is, the government, financial sector, nonfinancial companies, and trade unions, as well as prospective pensioners or actual retirees. The major section provides a review of arguments in favor of pension funding, drawing from media debates, and official announcements, with the aim to identify the rationale for pension funding. Next, it considers how this logical position is related to specific material interests. JEL Classification: B52, P16, P52