EARLY RETIREMENT IN OECD COUNTRIES: THE ROLE OF SOCIAL SECURITY SYSTEMS

The early withdrawal of older workers from the labour market is one of the most striking socio-economic developments common to most OECD countries in recent decades. While working beyond the age of 65 was the rule for males in all OECD countries in the 1960s, this is now the exception and the average retirement age for males is well below 60 in some European countries. Thanks to the large baby-boom generation boosting the labour force, the trend towards earlier withdrawal from the labour force has not become a major burden for society so far. However, as the baby-boom generation starts moving into retirement in large numbers over the coming two decades, the share of the working-age population in the total will drop, and the low retirement age will amplify the problems associated with ageing populations. It is therefore important to understand the forces which have contributed to lower the retirement age over the past three decades, and this is the main purpose of this paper.