Who Has Had the Main Say in the Path of the Czech Pension Reform: Politicians, Experts - or Both?

Author(s): Martin Potůček,Veronika Rudolfova / Language(s): English Publication Year: 0

Although pension systems are among the most stable elements of social systems, even they evolve. In recent decades, dozens of countries have joined in by enacting minor adjustments or significant reforms. Politicians as well as invited experts have been paying close attention to the topic. In this paper, we analyze the framework of the spirit and content of the discourse of the Czech pension reform between 2004 and 2014 with the aid of discursive institutionalism theory and methods of framing analysis.

Pension Sharing

Author(s): Jaroslav Vostatek / Language(s): English Publication Year: 0

A proposal to introduce sharing of assessment base by spouses in the Czech social pension insurance is confronted with the pension theory and policy. The proposed “joint social insurance" should arise automatically, with the option of cancellation based on an agreement. The case has primarily confirmed the need to respect the basic concept of public pensions in the given country. The concept of pensions as entitlements of individuals, and not families, is in conflict with the mentioned proposal which cannot be overcome in the conditions of the complicated defined benefit system. After a potential transition to a notional defined contribution system the sharing of pensions would be feasible - but not necessary.

Region to Region Comparison of Selected Social Services for Senior Citizens

Author(s): Miloslava Kašparova,Jiří Křupka,Pavel Jirava / Language(s): English Publication Year: 0

This contribution deals with the topic of certain social services provided on the level of and by the Czech Republic [CR) administrative regions. This contribution is focused senior citizens [elderly) target group. The objective of a background study executed for the purpose of this contribution was to identify how social services for this target group had developed with time. The objective is also to show what the midterm tendencies in this services sector in connection with democratic developments towards population ageing are. Relevant data was acquired from Regional information service [RIS) and from the Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs of the CR [MPSV CR).

Bayesian Estimates of the Regional Costs in Public Health System of the Czech Republic

Author(s): Pavla Jindrová,Kateřina Seinerová / Language(s): English Publication Year: 0

Unlike commercial insurance premiums, monthly contribution to the health insurance system depends mainly on the income of the insured person. Amount of revenue of the health insurance companies, however, should be sufficient to cover all costs, especially the cost of health care. Health care costs vary. The paper presents the process of the health care costs estimation in the regions of the Czech Republic by applying the empirical Bayesian credibility models.

What is the Future of Public Expenditure in the European Countries?

Author(s): Mirka Wildmannova / Language(s): English Publication Year: 0

The 20th century experienced major changes in the structure and conception of the welfare state, mainly as a result of demographic, economic and social changes. This was accompanied by a multiple increase in public expenditure in the social sector and the welfare state has found itself in a crisis since the 1990's. Given the fiscal unsustainability of the present social systems, measures and reforms addressing the fiscal crisis of the welfare state are being introduced.

What We Know about the Child Tax Bonus in the Czech Republic and What We Would Like to Know

Author(s): Jana Godarová,Robert Jahoda / Language(s): English Publication Year: 0

Families with children are traditionally the target group of the social system in developed countries. This paper deals with regular financial support, which maybe the household entitled to in the Czech Republic, specifically the child tax bonus (hereinafter "CTB"). Changing the Act on income taxes, since 2007 the child tax allowance has been replaced by the refundable child tax credit in the Czech Republic. This may take the form of the non-refundable part of the tax credit, followed by the child tax bonus. While other elements of the welfare system for families have been already analysed, “CTB” is still unexplored.

Effect of Changes in Taxes and Benefits on Redistribution in the Czech Republic

Author(s): Jan Pavel,Leoš Vitek / Language(s): English Publication Year: 0

The Czech Republic has over the past decade carried out two waves of tax and benefit reforms. The first one took place in 2005–2006 during the left-wing government and the second one has been carried out in 2008 by the right-wing government. Using EU-SILC data for selected types of households, the paper assesses changes in the distribution of gross incomes and effects of the changes in taxes and benefits on the distribution of incomes after taxes and a provision of social benefits. The analysis is performed using Lorenz curves and Gini coefficients. The results show that the tax system changes the distribution of incomes significantly less than benefit systems.

Public and Private Pensions: A Competitive Approach

Author(s): Jaroslav Vostatek / Language(s): English Publication Year: 0

The paper concentrates on the first, second and third pension pillars according to the World Bank classification – in these pillars there are products which may compete in the effectiveness. No attention is paid to the zero, solidarity pillar. The neoliberal approaches justified in the first period the full privatization of public pensions beyond the solidarity pillar and later the transition to a half privatization under the catchword of diversification. The neoliberal theory has lead to a development of the NDC and FDC social insurance products, which are, as for the effects for clients, directly comparableto the private FDC products. Under comparable conditions the basic and supplementary social insurances are more favourable than mandatory private insurance and subsidized voluntary private insurance.

VENTURE CAPITAL AND PENSION SYSTEM

Author(s): Gábor Dávid Kiss / Language(s): English Publication Year: 0

This study deals with the possible link between pension funds, venture capital and innovation to manage the challenge of aging. Institutional capacities of Hungarian second pillar is engrossed by the reallocation of it's bond and stock portfolio - therefore "exotic" investments as selected investment into the real economy by means of venture funds is uninterested. Innovative SME-s have low share on venture capital market of Visegrad countries. This is inconnection with the neofordist or knowledge user profile of the subnational regions of these countries.

PENSION REFORM IN THE CZECH REPUBLIC

Author(s): Taťána Lyčková / Language(s): English Publication Year: 0

Currently, the situation of the state pension schemes is being reformed in many European countries due to the demographic changes (increasing number of the people drawing pensions and decreasing number of the people contributing to the social insurance scheme). Even the Czech Republic could have insolvency problem if no changes of the current pension scheme based on the PAYG (pay-as-you-go) financing are implemented.

INTERGENERATIONAL REDISTRIBUTION AND SOLIDARITY AS AN INTEGRAL PART OF A PENSION SYSTEM

Author(s): Dana Hálová / Language(s): English Publication Year: 0

Demographical ageing is one of the challenges for the 21st century. Increasing longevity and decreasing fertility are main drivers to population ageing. All around the world new debates on new significant changes to many of our institutions and pension reforms have arisen.

Funding Social Services in the Czech Republic in the Light of EU Legislation

Author(s): Ladislav Průša,Mirka Wildmannova / Language(s): English Publication Year: 0

The Czech Republic joined the European Union in May 2004 and one of the conditions for membership was to reconcile the legal environment in the Czech Republic so that it would be in synergy with the single market of the EU. Since then, the legal environment has evolved in response to newly arising changes. In 2006, the Directive on services in the internal market was adopted, which among other things specifies the rules governing fair competition.

Postupanje centara za socijalni rad u slučajevima nasilja u porodici tokom pandemije COVID-19

Author(s): Dženana Lepirica / Language(s): Bosnian Publication Year: 0

Nasilje u porodici ozbiljan je društveni problem koji snažno pogađa sve zemlje svijeta bez obzira na stupanj njihove razvijenosti. Razlika među pojedinim zemljama sastoji se uglavnom u načinu odgovora institucija sistema na problem prevencije i postupanja u slučajevima nasilja u porodici koje predstavlja najočitiji primjer kršenja ljudskih prava i sloboda.

Poglavlje 28: Zaštita potrošača i zdravlja

Author(s): Danilo Ajković,Ana Vujošević / Language(s): Montenegrine Publication Year: 0

Evropski propisi koji se tiču poglavlja 28 mogu biti grupisani u tri grupe normi: Jedna grupa uređuje kontrolu proizvoda i usluga namjenjenih potrošačima. Potrošač očekuje da roba koju kupuje, odnosno usluga koju pribavlja ima određeni kvalitet. Kvalitet podrazumjeva korisnost robe i djelotvornost usluge, pogodnost za upotrebu, ispravnost, sigurnost, pouzdanost, odsustvo mana. Druga grupa uređuje obavještavanje potrošača, jer se informacijama potrošač najbolje brani od nepovoljnosti robe ili usluge. Veoma često potrošač nije u mogućnosti da dođe do svih njemu važnih informacija. Treća grupa reguliše ugovor između trgovca i potrošača. Na osnovu ugovora sa trgovcem potrošač pribavlja proizvode i usluge koji su mu neophodni. Njegova specifičnost je u tome što ga zaključuju dvije nejednake strane - trgovac kao jača, a potrošač kao slabija strana. Zaštita potrošača u ugovoru sa trgovcem obuhvata specijalna pravila propisana u korist potrošača koja teže da otklone ovu nejednakost.

Европейската гаранция за детето като инструмент за управление на кризата с бедността при децата

Author(s): Maria Yankova-Mladenova / Language(s): Bulgarian Publication Year: 0

Before the COVID-19 pandemic, almost a quarter of children in Europe were at risk of poverty and social exclusion. The forecasts in the following years are for an increase in poverty and social exclusion caused by the continuing impact of the crisis on the socio economic situation in the Member States across Europe. In response, the European Commission established the EU Child Guarantee with a view to ensuring that every child in Europe at risk of poverty or social exclusion has access to the most fundamental rights such as health and education. The EU Child Guarantee itself will be effective only within a broader set of integrated measures, as outlined in the European Pillar of Social Rights Action Plan, and within a broader policy framework of the EU strategy on the Rights of the Child.

Providing care services: strategies of key actors and emerging policy change in Norway

Author(s): Marie Louise Seeberg,Jorunn Theresia Jessen / Language(s): English Publication Year: 0

In Norway, key actors in eldercare and key actors in childcare do not as a rule coordinate their work across the two care fields. On the contrary, each of the two fields appears to be anchored in sets of policy history that do not, at any recent point in time, converge. Yet they are both part of the same political and social development. Family care strategies and public care regimes are mutually constituted, so that changes in the one will necessarily lead to changes in the other. Comparing the two care fields within one country is especially useful in bringing out the characteristics of each field. In the present chapter, we shall look into some of the implications of the dynamics between family care and public care regimes on the macro level, with emphasis on gender equality both on the labour market and in the family as an explicit and undisputed political goal. In so doing, we build on Daly (2002), especially on her discussion about the implications of care provision for society and on her typology for provision of care. The former draws attention to the implications for gender and ethnic equity. The latter facilitates a comparison of two policy fields that, in spite of being contemporaneous parts of the same welfare state, are organized and understood very differently.

Balancing acts: Family care strategies and policy frameworks in the Czech Republic

Author(s): Blanka Plasová,Kateřina Kubalčíková / Language(s): English Publication Year: 0

As is deeply discussed in Chapter 1, childcare and/or eldercare stand at the intersection of the state, the market and the family (Daly and Lewis 2000). From the micro-perspective, it is then important how families/ caregivers cope with care requirements in a contemporary society characterized by an aging population together with increased life expectancy, growing labour market participation of women (as traditional caregivers), enforcement of gender equality and welfare state changes (permanent austerity trends, expansion of the service sector) (e.g. Esping-Andersen 2009; Blome et al. 2009). Thus, we firstly explore how families organize care, what kind of care they provide to their children and dependent elderly members, how the responsibilities and tasks are shared, and how they combine caregiving with other commitments in their daily lives such as paid work and family life. The question of care arrangements, work-family balance and expectations of family caregivers is relatively open in expert and public debates in the case of the childcare field (e.g. Křížková and Vohlídalová 2009); however, the study of care provided by families to older adults is a recent focus in the Czech Republic (e.g. Jeřábek 2013; Havlíková 2012). In our data, we found several models in child- as well as in eldercare arrangements which we introduce below.

Balancing acts: Policy frameworks and family care strategies in Norway

Author(s): Margunn Bjørnholt,Kari Stefansen,Liridona Gashi,Marie Louise Seeberg / Language(s): English Publication Year: 0

What is the practical and emotional reality of combining paid work and care in a highly developed universal welfare state with high levels of employment of women and strong institutional and ideological support for the dual earner–dual carer model? In this chapter we explore this question using Norway as a case, and drawing on qualitative interviews with both parents of young children and adults who have care responsibilities for older family members or relatives.

Work-family squeeze in Norway and the Czech Republic: On the prevalence and consequences of care and work combinations in two different contexts

Author(s): Thomas Hansen,Jana Válková / Language(s): English Publication Year: 0

Population ageing profoundly changes the balance between generations in developed countries. Governments are responding with policies to promote active ageing (e.g. later retirement) and intergenerational solidarity (i.e. family care) (Daatland et al. 2010; Huber et al. 2009). However, these goals may be hard to reconcile for people in midlife who have to balance work and family obligations to parents or children. The plight of midlife caregivers confronted with multiple role responsibilities raises concerns over their psychological well-being.

Index

Author(s): Author Not Specified / Language(s): English Publication Year: 0