Document Type

Article

Publication Date

1980

Source Publication

Canadian Taxation. Volume 2, Issue 4 (1980), p. 186-197.

Abstract

There are many acknowledged defects in private pension schemes as they are presently administered: vesting requirements are long, most plans are not portable, plans are subject to insolvencies, and benefits are inadequate because, among other reasons, they are not indexed for inflation. In this article, Harry Glasbeek argues that there is little hope that these defects in private pension schemes will be remedied since the primary motivation behind their entrenchment was not to provide retirement income for employees, but was to provide certain benefits for employers such as a more stable work force, the easier retirement of less productive workers, and the accumulation of a large private investment fund. Indeed he argues that, ironically and in spite of their expressed ideology, those who seriously argue that private pensions can be improved invariably end up making suggestions that would have private pension schemes take on the characteristics of a public pension scheme. He concludes by arguing the case for abolishing private pensions and substituting a public non-earnings related scheme.

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