In France, 55.9% of people over 55 are employed. In Sweden it was 76.9%. An oft-cited example is that Sweden’s pension system encourages working later and, according to experts, helps balance the financial situation. But according to some associations, it is also a vehicle for social inequality.
Stockholm is the employment capital for older people in Europe. Kim Rindell, 68, is the janitor for three buildings. These small jobs added nearly €1,000 to his €1,800 pension. He found them through a temporary agency that specializes in employment for seniors. There are about fifty in the country. In Sweden, where workers leave their jobs on average at 65, higher pensions and tax cuts encourage people to work later.
unequal system
According to Ole Settergen, chief analyst at the Swedish Pensions Administration, “With this system, the budget is basically in surplus. According to our projections, it will be in surplus for the next 75 years”. But the system doesn’t work for women, whose pensions are on average 30 percent lower than men’s. Unstable or difficult jobs, as well as choppy careers, can also be penalized. The inequalities condemned by the association are often cited as role models in the country.