Honors Theses
Date of Award
2011
Document Type
Undergraduate Thesis
Department
Croft Institute for International Studies
First Advisor
Alice Cooper
Relational Format
Dissertation/Thesis
Abstract
Public pension programs around the world face an uncertain future. Many countries of the post-industrial world are witnessing a significant demographic shift: the aging of their respective populations. France has not escaped this demographic dilemma and the concomitant strain on its public pension system. Despite the popularity of the French welfare state, the aging of the baby boom generation, dubbed the “papy boom” in France, is shaking the foundations on which the system was established. This thesis argues that a balanced pension system is a more equitable system. This thesis presents an economic model that measures the impact of variables of reform not only on the fiscal deficit of the pension system but also on cohorts of generations. The model shows that solidarity can be quantified, in terms of the relative cost of pensions and their benefit to each cohort, and thus pension reform—as a goal in and of itself—becomes much more attainable. The model presented in this thesis demonstrates that the rising cost of pensions from the papy boom and the consequent intergenerational inequity can be avoided simply by manipulating variables such as benefit levels, contribution rates, and retirement age.
Recommended Citation
Dayan, Emilie Anne, "Papy Boom and Public Pensions: Achieving Fiscal Sustainability and Intergenerational Solidarity within the French Public Pension System" (2011). Honors Theses. 2312.
https://egrove.olemiss.edu/hon_thesis/2312
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